I apologize for not forewarning you, the readers, sooner about the previous chapter. I guess I wanted to see how many readers would catch on about Chapter 4 being a lengthier chapter than the previous three chapters. Anyway, the reason I did Chapter 4 longer is to introduce more characters, but I didn't plan out how long the chapter would be, what dialogues would come in, and the points-of-views, which I think flowed nicely in Chapter 4.
Now, for Chapter 5 I will only tell you this is the first time we learn what the villains and villainesses are doing, but will we see their camp or discover its location? You'll find out as you read on.
Chapter Five:
Truthful Riddles
Meanwhile…
Inside a dimmed room with very little light except from the torches, with firelight in a sickly green color, villains and villainesses that remained alive, some had managed to escape their deathly fates, gathered in a wide circle. They whispered words in low mutters until a tall witch wearing sleek, raven-colored robes and a pair of raven horns on top of her head walked towards the very centre of the wide stone-cold room. She moved her raven-colored staff that carried a small orb, encased by long metallic thorns at the top of the staff, up in the air. The orb floated out of her staff, taking a larger shape as it floated in the darkened void.
The witch stood back as the orb revealed images, for all to see, of the underground arena in the Evenshire Camp and the training that was still taking place between the three small groups of heroes. Some villains and villainesses cackled wickedly upon seeing a few heroes they recognized, but looked further frantic upon seeing a Halfling fighting a human child, who a witch wearing a white dress recognized right away.
Silencing the crowd of villains and villainesses with a raised hand, the White Witch declared, "Ah! So Edmund has decided to fight in mortal combat against a lowly Halfling?" She shook her head in disbelief, "Such pity from the King of Narnia."
"Indeed, Jadis," said the witch in the raven-colored robes and horns. Her expression was filled with chagrin, as she continued, "However, we have not gathered to discuss the lowly lives of Halflings. Our main concern is making sure those stars fall from the night sky, killing off worlds we sought to destroy centuries ago."
A lion with a scar across his left eye, as well as a raven-colored mane and tail, laughed in a wicked, purring tone. "So be it, Maleficent, but my concern lies with killing off Mufasa's offspring and his followers. You remember what happened in the story I told you about Simba and his pride?"
"Scar is right!" announced a lioness. "Simba must be defeated, and Kovu with him!" She cackled as the villains and villainesses agreed with her, loudly and in unison.
Maleficent raised a hand to silence them. When they wouldn't listen to her, she cast a lightning bolt from her staff towards a young lion across the way. The young lion with the rough raven mane shied towards his mother and Scar.
In warning, Maleficent told the lioness, "Zira, behave yourself! We will not be villains and villainesses who charge out into dawn's horizon with a lead foot. We will continue to remain in hiding until we can figure out what to do with these… pathetic heroes that constantly choose to rampage in on our glory days, when we ruled with might and valor!" She waited until the cheering stopped, before she told a royal witch, who stood next to her, "You know what to do and if the Halfling stops you, make sure he doesn't attempt it again."
"Right away, Maleficent," said the Evil Queen, leaving the stone-walled, ceremonial chamber in a flurry.
"As for the rest of you, leave me until I call you," ordered Maleficent, as she cast a lightning bolt at a goblin king, who zipped out of the room faster than the villains and villainesses had expected would happen.
After a walk through a couple of stone corridors, dimly lit in a purple-green hue by flaming torches, the Evil Queen reached a secondary chamber, where an oval mirror in a gold frame hung in the very center of an arched stone wall. In haste, the Evil Queen asked her slave in the mirror, whose masculine face appeared out of the misty gray-blue fog, the very same question she had asked for years: who was the fairest of them all? The slave in the mirror answered her question in a riddle, this time with a new answer:
"Snow White is still fairest of them all.
But now, someone else has a tale to tell.
As long as the Ring-bearer survives,
Evil will be destroyed within a fortnight."
"How can that be?" asked the Evil Queen, frustrated. Calming herself, she asked the magic mirror, "What is the name of thy Ring-bearer?"
The mirror answered the second question, once more, in a riddle:
"He is the Halfling you seek.
His heart is wise and carefree.
To find his last name, look for a Bag.
For his first name, you should walk to and fro in a maze."
The Evil Queen muttered, enraged now, "Baggins' nephew. I should have known!" With that, she cast the slave in the magic mirror away.
When Maleficent arrived inside her throne room, she sat down on her throne, which had a large pillow on top of the cold, grayish-black stone seat and spiked stone horns, curved in such a way that did not hurt Maleficent when she was resting, sitting, and observing her minions, who stood a few feet below her stone chair. Her goblin minions approached her with nervous expressions across their faces. Maleficent nearly shooed her goblins away when the Evil Queen entered her chamber.
As she heaved in and out deep breaths, the Evil Queen finally managed to say, in warning, "Maleficent, I have grave news."
"Well," said Maleficent, now intrigued. "I hope this will be good news."
The Evil Queen shook her head. "No, it's terrible news."
"Then tell me and be quick, or I shall summon you out of my throne room," said Maleficent, her patience wearing thin.
The Evil Queen nodded in agreement. "The news I bring comes from the vision we, as villains and villainesses, saw in your glowing orb." She paused to let the thought sink in. "This is about the Halfling we saw, fighting the human child Jadis claimed was the King of Narnia. His name is Baggins, but he is not the Ring-keeper. He is the nephew of the Ring-keeper – he is – the Ring-bearer who destroyed Sauron's Ring of Power in Mount Doom, all those years ago. I fear he has come to the Evenshire Camp to destroy all evil, but I suspect that means us as well, Maleficent."
Alert, Maleficent told her with confidence, "Why yes! I have heard of this Halfling, shortly before Sauron's death and Mount Doom's destruction. Do not fear. This Halfling will find me… I mean us, of course."
"He will?" asked the Evil Queen, already suspicious.
"Of course," said Maleficent in reply. "If you and your magic mirror are correct, then Baggins' nephew will come to the Merswold Camp, in search of information on what caused the stars to fall across the night sky. Then we will capture him and ask him for information about his 'hero' friends." She then commanded, "Now, why don't you set a watch on the Camp and keep a low profile when a few heroes come snooping around."
"Yes, Maleficent. Right away," said the Evil Queen, malevolently. As she cackled, the Evil Queen darted out of Maleficent's underground throne room. She was out of the throne room, when Maleficent chuckled, wickedly, behind her teeth.