A/N ok so here is part 2! Thanks for the reviews ya'll and PLEASE continue to send them! I live off reviews! Things will start getting more interesting I swear. Just stick with it. This chap starts off in the negotiation room. Thanks again for reading!
"Narnia wants peaces between our lands! Not to be your back up in a war we would never endorse!" Edmund said in exasperation. The negotiations had been going for hours now and the Calormen diplomats had tried to get Narnian land, which the regents had violently refused, Narnian resources without any return goods, and now they wanted use of Narnian troops in any senseless war the Calormen government decided to start.
"You are completely unreasonable!" The Tisroc exclaimed.
"Us!? You're the one who wants everything we have with no help in return!" Peter said, standing and pacing the room. Edmund stood as well and went to stand by the fireplace that was in the great hall and pinched the bridge of his nose, wishing away the massive headache he had.
The Grand Vizier subtly motioned to Tisroc, letting him know that his was not the way to deal with the Narnians. The Tisroc responded with an exasperated look, clearly conveying the thought that he thought he was being generous. Fine. He would try a different tactic.
"Narnia simply wants peace. Understandable. But you offer us nothing. You must understand this is business and it must prosper both sides and I think I have a solution." The Tisroc stood and walked toward Edmund who had looked up in interest. The girls, who had been sitting quietly as instructed by Peter, turned and looked hopeful that this long negotiation would soon come to an end.
"I am willing to offer total peace with the exchange of a gift." The Tisroc came even closer to Edmund. Peter edged closer, an uneasy feeling gnawing at his stomach. "After all, what country needs four monarchs?" The Tisroc said with a chuckle. He stepped forward and grabbed Edmunds chin between his finger and thumb and lifted it appraisingly.
"Yes you are a strong one with a fair complexion as well. You would make a wonderful edition to my private collection of slaves." Peter was there in an instant, sword drawn and standing between the Tisroc and his brother, who was visibly shaken. The guards in the room drew their weapons as well and Lucy and Susan jumped to their feet, daggers in hand, ready to defend their brothers. Both the Grand Vizier and Prince Daka looked incredible tense and not sure what to do. The tension and anger in the room was palpable.
"If you ever touch my brother again, I will give our countries reason for war. And Calormen reason to find a new Tisroc." Peter spoke these words with deadly calm but an uncontrollable anger burned in his eyes.
"You would be killed!" The Tisroc spat, indignation written all over his face. Peter twisted his wrist slightly so that his sword pointed directly at the ruler's chest.
"Perhaps. But after you had suffered for your serious transgression." The absolute promise in these words infuriated the Tisroc but it also scared him. The fierce protectiveness over his brother and the hatred shown for the Tisroc, told everyone in the room that Peter would gladly make good on his promise.
"My lord," The Grand Viziers silky voice broke the silence. He stepped between the rulers of the two counties, and gently moved the Tisroc back. "It has been a long day. Tensions are high but no harm was meant by either party. I propose we conclude today's proceedings and continue fresh tomorrow."
The Tisroc exhaled in a huff and said, "Agreed." Then stalked out of the room, followed by Prince Daka and the other dignitaries. Susan and Lucy sheathed their daggers and left the room followed by Edmund, who was still quiet, then Peter, who still had his sword out.
Once they got to their rooms Peter sheathed his sword and pulled Edmund into a strong hug. Edmund returned the hug fiercely, needing his brother's comfort because he was still shaken from the prospect of being a slave. Peter pulled back and began angrily pacing the room along with Susan. Lucy had taken to hanging onto Edmunds waist, thoroughly upset by the turn of events.
"That monster!" Susan exclaimed angrily, furious by the threat to her brother. Peter was past words he was so angry. That filth had touched his brother! Insinuated making him a slave in exchange for peace! AS a ruler, Narnia and her people should be his first priority and mostly that was true. But in the case of his siblings he was no longer king, he was a lethally trained older brother who would not hesitate to kill for his siblings.
"Well, Calormen is a bit…different than I expected." Edmund commented softly, smiling sheepishly at his older siblings. Peter and Susan stopped pacing and stared at him, slack jawed. Then they simultaneously burst into laughter at their brother's poor attempt at levity. Peter walked over and ruffled his brother's hair.
"A bit? I'd hate to see your definition of drastically different." The four just smiled at each other. They stayed in their rooms for the remainder of the night and had their dinner brought to them. They were just finishing up and getting ready for bed when Lucy turned to Peter and said,
"I don't like it here. I've had an awful feeling about it since we've arrived and I want to go home. Dash peace, we have Aslan on our side." Peter smiled sadly.
"It doesn't work like that Lu. It's our job to keep Narnia safe for Aslan. We can't very well do that if we fight every country that we don't like." Lucy folded her arms and looked petulant.
"I know. But I still don't like it." Peter chuckled and looked at Susan. The Gentle queen nodded and shooed Lucy off to bed with her. The two oldest were usually quite telepathic when it came to parenting their younger siblings. Once they were gone, Peter sighed and rubbed his head tiredly, looking much older than he was.
"Forget about today, Pete." Edmund advised wisely.
"How can I? They way they treated you? What they're willing to do? It's barbaric!" Peter spat in disgust. Edmund nodded.
"Yes. But we don't understand this nation's complex social order or beliefs. Nor do they understand ours. How are we to make peace with a people we don't understand? And I assume peace is still the main objective?"
"Yes of course it is. What do you suggest?" Peter asked, knowing his brother was thinking about the thousands of Narnians back home that they were serving.
"Learn. We need to learn more about these people before an agreement will be made."
"I don't know how you can be so calm after today. You're right though. Tomorrow we begin learning. Tonight we sleep! Off to bed with you!"
"Yes my liege!" Edmund said, jumping up and mock-bowing to his brother while narrowly avoiding a pillow thrown at his head by the High King himself.
The next morning, after they had woke and dressed, the Grand Vizier entered with a surprising proposal.
"My lord the Tisroc, may he live forever, feels there are too many misunderstandings between our two peoples so he sends his invitation to join us at our most prestigious form of entertainment." Peter looked surprised by this offer and looked to his siblings for their opinions. Susan and Lucy both looked hopeful, thinking this was the first step toward friendship. Edmund looked skeptical at the sudden gesture but nevertheless nodded his approval. It was, after all, an amazing opportunity. Peter turned back to the Vizier with his most kingly smile and said,
"We accept and are most grateful for the opportunity."
"Wonderful! Please follow me and I will lead you to the arena." The Vizier said with a great smile, leaving the room with a flourish. The girls followed him out, flanked by the boys, who had a suspicious feeling they were walking into something they'd regret. Their Faun guards followed a short distance behind.
The group of Narnians were led through passages of the palace they had never seen before that ran parallel to a courtyard and passed all the slave quarters. The boys memorized the way, something Oreius had taught them to do when in enemy territory in case they ever needed to find their way again.
They passed one room that smelt strongly of perfume and the sound of weeping was prominent. Lucy, always wanting to help, peeked inside and saw a room full of beautiful Calormen women, all veiled. Some were crying and others were consoling them, hugging them close or letting them cry into their shoulders. Lucy was about to ask what was wrong but one of the Faun guards touched her shoulder gently and shook his head when Lucy looked up at him questioningly. Peter and Edmund had stopped to watch and looked to the other guard, who had a look of disgust of his face, for answers.
"Fauns mate for life. It is not so with other countries."
"A harem?" Peter asked, already knowing the answer.
"Why are they upset?" Edmund asked. The Faun shook his head, clearly not knowing the answer but they were all deeply troubled by this. They hurried to catch up with the rest of the group, just in time to be led through open doors into brilliant sunshine and onto a terrace. The sight that met them was awe inspiring and all the Narnians were struck. They stood on the kings platform, high above an arena much like the Gladiator's of Rome that they had learned about in England but far larger. It looked as if all of Calormen could fit in the seats below and the arena itself was full of sand and large boulders that would serve as obstacles. It looked like an overblown version of their training grounds in Narnia.
To their left the Tisroc sat in a chair whose grandeur was second only to the royal thrown. There were four smaller seats, two on either side of the Tisroc, for the kings and queens to sit.
"Ah, Welcome! Now you will get a taste of true Calormen Culture! Please sit!" The Tisroc said joyfully. Prince Daka was standing behind him with eyes downcast. Peter and Edmund sat on either side of the Tisroc and Susan sat on Edmund's left while on the other side Lucy sat to Peter's right. Their guards hovered protectively behind them.
"Thank you for your kindness. May I ask what kind of games are these?" Susan asked in the most diplomatic of ways.
"It is a game for our most trained warriors to see who the best is." The Tisroc said simply.
"And what are the rules?"
"First to kill, wins." The color drained from all four siblings faces at these words but before an outraged word could be uttered, a gong sounded and two doors opened at either end of the arena and two young men stepped out. One was tall and lanky, with a scared expression on his young face. The other looked battle warn and had a hardened look in his eyes. He wore a sleeveless tunic and baggy trousers and his grungy hair hung to his broad shoulders. He was muscular and fit but even from the platform the kids could see scars adorning his arms and one long scar tracing his jaw line. Each man held a curved scimitar and the battle worn man walked to the center of the ring with confidence while the other one skulked forward slowly. When the two met in the middle there was no formal announcement to start, no warning. The stronger of the two just attacked the other one.
The crowd erupted in cheers and yelling, egging the two warriors on. They were both well trained but the muscular man was a natural. He struck upward, barely giving his opponent time to block, and then he thrust forward, forcing the other man to jump back. It was clear he had no intention of prolonging this fight any longer than necessary. Peter quickly motioned for one of his guards to come forward.
"Take my sisters back to our rooms. Now!" He commanded, almost frantically. They girls had seen too much battle in their time. The Faun bowed and said, "Yes sir!" and ushered the girls out. It was not a moment too soon because the experienced warrior had jumped onto one of the boulders to gain the upper ground. He poised his sword and leapt down at his opponent, plunging the weapon into the other man's chest. The crowds cheering was deafening as the man pulled his sword free and watched the other man fall to the ground, dead before he hit.
Peter and Edmund shared a looked that conveyed their disbelief and horror. What kind of people enjoyed the slaughter of others! The victor raised his bloody sword to the Tisroc and shouted something in the Calormen language, then walked out of the door he came from.
"For you, father." Prince Daka translated sadly.
"Father?!" Peter exclaimed in surprise.
"They both were my sons. Illegitimate of course. But now you have a taste of our life style, our culture. Better for negotiations yes?" Edmund had been trying to control the tempest of anger building in him this whole time at the injustice of it all.
"This is monstrous! If this is a hint into the war mongering of your country then Narnia will have nothing to do with you! You're…" Edmund, who had stood to give his speech to the Tisroc, was cut off by Peter jumping to his feet and clamping a hand over his mouth.
"Forgive him. This is very different from our land. We need time to process this new information." Indignation shown in the Tisroc's eyes and he said coldly,
"Go." Peter practically dragged Edmund out of the platform, followed by the remaining guard.
"Pete how could you be so calm!? That display was…was…" Edmund couldn't find the right words, he was so outraged by the new turn of events.
"Don't think for one minute I'm ok with this, Ed!" Edmund looked up at his brother and saw intense fury in his ice blue eyes. The severity of the situation fell upon the boys like a blow to the stomach. This was a strange country with games of life or death and they needed to learn the rules before something really bad happened.
To be continued…