Hi everyone, thanks for the reviews! Once again I'm amazed at how popular this story is! If you haven't done so yet, please check out the prequel to this "I Couldn't Leave Her" or my other current Edmund story "Shards Of A Haunted Mind" (it's my personal favourite…although I love this one too!) I would just like to offer my sympathies to anyone who's had to return to school, or college, or university or whatever, that really sucks! Anyway, please review again, it does make me happy! Enjoy!
Caspian jolted awake with his heart thumping at the loud and very close-by noise. He was frozen for a moment, wondering what on earth had woken him before suddenly breathing a sigh of relief as he realised it was only Eustace's snoring.
He scowled, adding it to his mental list of things he didn't like about Eustace. He'd been having a particularly nice dream about winning a jousting competition, and had been moments away from receiving his surprise prize when he'd been rudely awoken.
Seeing that the sun was rising he sat up slowly, his back a little stiff from sleeping on the sand. He took a moment to appreciate the sun rise and the brilliant light it had cast over the sleeping island, making everything strangely orange.
He struggled to stand, being careful not to wake Edmund and stretched his limbs out in all directions, wishing he could have slept longer but looking forward to what promised to be a day of adventure.
He stepped off the rug he and Edmund had slept on, looking for their small storage of water. His foot fell in an odd imprint in the sand, and after a single moment of confusion he realised he was looking at a giant footprint. It was almost 4 times the size of his own foot, and as he looked around he saw more and more of them, all around the sleeping forms of the sailors.
His breathing hitched as he realised that there was a concentration of the footprints by the girls' rug, and only one sleeping figure was there now.
He immediately stooped down, shaking Edmund's shoulder. "Ed?" Edmund moved a little and Caspian slapped his arm sharply; this was not a good time to want another 5 minutes. "Ed, wake up." He commanded quietly, looking all the time at the footprints around where Esha and Lucy should be sleeping. Edmund made a questioning noise in his throat and turned his head to look sleepily at Caspian. "Wake up, look!"
Edmund struggled up quickly, realising by the urgency in Caspian's voice that something was desperately wrong.
"The girls." Caspian spluttered as Edmund noticed the giant footprints. "Esha?" He suddenly called in a voice that was unnaturally loud for the still air. The crew around them jumped awake.
"Lucy?" Edmund called out with the same panic.
"Everybody up!" Drinian suddenly commanded in his authoritative, deep voice, wide awake already. "Get up! Get up I say!"
Everyone scrambled awake, grabbing their weapons in a daze. They hadn't even noticed the huge footprints, but when one pointed them out they all stared, amazed and nervous that the creatures had been so close to them whilst they slept.
"This way." Caspian called out, beginning to run in the direction the footprints led.
"Look lively! Move!" Drinian barked, beginning to insult them as they all stood, too awed by the footprints to move.
They began to chase after Edmund who was close at Caspian's heals, all stumbling over the uneven surface and kicking up sand.
The visible trail ended as soon as they reached the end of the sand, and they continued at a much slower pace as Caspian and Edmund led the way bent almost double, looking for any flattened blades of grass or other indications that someone had passed through recently.
"Here!" Caspian suddenly exclaimed, seeing the outline of one of the footprints in the grass. They all began to run that way before having to stop as they reached a sort of field with oddly-shaped plants in it and thousands of pathways around each plant.
"This is hopeless." One of the sailors muttered. "How do we even know if they've got them? The two could have gone of exploring on their own…"
"Be quiet, you fool." Rhince barked. "Any buffon would have noticed there were no fresh human footprints mingled with the giant ones. The ladies could not have left on their own two feet!"
"He's right though, this is hopeless. We'll have to split up and look for any other clues. If we find the creatures we'll find the girls. They can't be hard to miss with feet that size." Edmund explained to Caspian, thinking quickly.
Caspian nodded and Drinian ordered the men to split into pairs, sending them off in different directions.
Edmund and Caspian went together, Edmund searching the ground and Caspian the bushes for any sign of where the creatures had been.
"Caspian! Lucy's dagger!" Edmund exclaimed in a horrified whisper, dropping to his knees beside the glinting weapon.
Caspian turned back with hope in his eyes, relieved that they were at least on the right track.
He jumped as something whizzed right past his ear and turned quickly. He knew that sound well; it was the noise of a spear as it flies through the air. Edmund sprang up, still holding onto Lucy's dagger and there were noises of surprise from the men around them as more spears were thrown, though by some blessed piece of luck none of them met their mark.
They all stared around for their enemy with creased brows, expecting them to be hiding in the bushes.
"Stop right there, or perish!" They were commanded by a deep, gravelly voice that came from the middle of nowhere.
Caspian jumped as his sword was pulled from his grasp by something unseen and he was thumped hard in the face, making his nose pound.
Edmund stared in confusion as the crew around him began letting out noises of surprise and pain as their swords were forced from their grasp and their bodies were hit by what was seemingly nothing but air. Then he too suffered the same; his sword was wrenched from both of his hands and he was whacked by something on the left side of his face and his stomach.
He recovered quickly, only to find his sword hovering in mid-air, pointing directly between his eyes.
"What sort of creatures are you?" Caspian demanded, getting to his feet and taking a few steps backwards towards the rest of the crew.
"Big ones, with the head of a tiger and the body of a man." The same voice as before replied. He and Edmund met eyes briefly for a moment as the both tried to think of a plan, but Caspian suddenly froze; his eyes wide and almost fearful and fixed at a point over Edmund's head.
With alarm Edmund whipped around, his own face taking on exactly the same expression as Caspians.
There, a few feet from the group, was Esha, suspended in the air. Her arms were pinned to her side by something invisible, and the way that the drapes of her dress fell it was obvious that something was behind her.
"Esha." Caspian whispered, but it was Edmund who called her name out loudly.
"Don't worry; I won't let them hurt you." He called out, his voice set. He took on a fighter's stance, his eyes never leaving her. The invisible creatures had knocked all of their weapons aside, but no matter, he could fight with his bare fists.
He'd fight anything for her, and now it seemed he was about to fight with the air.
But the air behind her began to move, seeming to almost wobble and quiver. If possible, Edmund's eyes grew bigger, for the creature behind her had become visible and was not one; but three. They were like dwarfs, but with one large foot instead of two and with even wilder and bushier hair. Two of them were supporting the remaining one who was holding onto Esha, one arm pinning her arms to her waist and the other hand clasped over her mouth, hiding the entire bottom half of her face.
Her eyes widened as the one's surrounding the crew became visible too and her eyes boggled a little as she suddenly looked infuriated.
The creature holding onto her gave a yelp of pain and removed his hand from her face, shaking his whole arm as though in great pain.
"Let go of me you fat-bellied pig!" She screeched, angry that she'd allowed herself to be scared of something that was actually so unintimidating it was laughable.
"Fat bellied?" Came the hurt echo from all around the circle.
She began kicking out frantically, targeting the huge foot of the one holding her now that she could see him. He gave another yelp of pain and dropped her abruptly, letting her fall heavily with a gasp of pain as her legs gave out from underneath her. After so long simply hanging in the air her legs couldn't support her.
Caspian hurried to help her whilst Edmund picked up his sword, raising the tip of it underneath the chin of the one closest. "What've you done with my sister, you little pipsqueak?" He struggled to keep his voice under control. Only half the weight on his chest had been lifted. Drinian was already there; he'd located their chief almost instantly and stood with his sword to the back of the creature's neck, keeping him under control.
Caspian pulled Esha up, letting her lean on him for a moment as her legs got used to walking again. "Of all the stupid, stupid things - " She was muttering. "I should have known…you have terrible personal hygiene." She spat back at the one who'd dropped her.
"Hygiene?" He asked, seemingly a bit dazed, though it was difficult to tell with these odd creatures.
"Absolutely disgusting smell..." She was still muttering. "I'll be tasting his revolting skin for months…" She fumed as she and Caspian joined the group again. "Learn to wash." She barked furiously at none of them in particular.
"Now, calm down.." The one-legged dwarf stuttered at both her and Edmund, cowering in fear now he was visible.
"Where is she?" Edmund demanded.
Some of the other creatures began calling out things, but Edmund had ears only for the one in front of him, their 'chief'.
"In the mansion." He suddenly said in his gravelly voice.
"What mansion?" Edmund insisted, his worry growing with every second that passed.
The creature's eyes flicked to the left nervously and Edmund turned as a light shone in the corner of his eye.
The air began to morph in the same way it had done when the creatures became visible, showing first just the outline of the huge mansion.
Edmund stared with wondrous eyes as the mansion appeared before his eyes, the clouds behind it still visible. It'd been a while since he'd seen such great magic, or even such a magnificent building. Within less than a second it had fully appeared, complete with towering spires and ivy-covered walls.
"Oh, that mansion..." He amended, feeling a little foolish.
He turned as he heard more voices, noticing with a vague and uncaring glance that Eustace had joined them and was complaining some more.
Caspian finally made it over with a slow and slightly limping Esha and Edmund quickly held out his arms, offering her his support without thinking. She grasped his outstretched arm and he hovered, ready to catch her should she fall as Caspian let her go.
She grabbed him with her other hand and flexed her left leg, wincing as she did so.
"What is it?" He asked worriedly, putting an arm around her and physically lifting her until she was only half standing on the ground.
"Pins and needles." She replied shortly with a grimace.
It took him a moment to process this, and when he did he couldn't help giving a bark of relief, but still he continued to support her.
"Lucy!" She suddenly exclaimed in relief as the younger girl silently came out of the mansion with a much older man. Now with only a slight hobble she threw herself forward and the two girls embraced at length.
The creatures all looked in their direction at her cry and immediately began hopping everywhere comically, their shrill voices fearfully screaming "Oppressor! Oppressor!"
"Your majesties." She heard Lucy's companion say as he bowed respectfully to Edmund and Caspian. The girls untwined their arms from around each other and Esha stared at the stranger, noting his odd appearance.
He was dressed in a flowing coat with unreadable scrawls written and drawn all over it and his beard was fluffy, though not in the same wiry way as the creatures.
"Caspian and Edmund." Lucy introduced, nodding at each in turn to indicate who was who. "This is Coriakin; it's his island."
After a quick glance at each other Edmund and Caspian bowed to Coriakin politely, recognising that they were trespassing on his land.
"That's what he thinks!" The chief of the creatures suddenly piped up from between them. "You have wronged us, magician!"
There were numerous noises of agreement from his fellow creatures.
"I have not wronged you…I made you invisible for your own protection." Coriakin said slowly, simply, as though explaining it for the thousandth time to a very small child. He walked forwards briskly and the creatures immediately started hopping backwards with a great urgency.
"Protection?" The chief demanded incredulously as the three royals and Esha began to follow in Coriakin's footsteps, watching the proceedings with interest.
"That's oppression!" Another interjected from beside the chief.
The chief seemed to take courage and inspiration from the other's words and yelled "Oppressor!" at Coriakin as though it were a huge insult.
"I have not oppressed you." Coriakin replied, sounding thoroughly bored and tired.
"But you could've, if you wanted to." The chief argued back, ignorant to the crew members who had to move out of his way as he bounced blindly backwards.
"Be gone!" Coriakin said gently, throwing something that resembled snow at them.
They began to hop even more furiously (if that was possible), yelling that it was a spell and that he was oppressing them. After a moment Eustace became visible, emerging from the middle of all the hopping bodies.
"What was that?" Lucy asked Coriakin incredulously, watching as the last of white fluff floated to the ground and sat on the grass.
"Lint. But don't tell them." He whispered loudly, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"What were those things?" Eustace asked, still shifting from side to side and looking nervously over his shoulder as the last of the creatures disappeared behind hedges and bushes.
"Dufflepuds." Coriakin called over his shoulder as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"Right, of course, silly me." Eustace snapped back, noticing that everyone was once again leaving him behind. He hurried after them, muttering to himself about the dangers of unknown creatures.
"Thanks for earlier." Lucy was whispering to Esha as they followed Coriakin, Edmund and Caspian just ahead of them.
"Was it hard?" Esha quietly asked back, getting used to be being able to feel both her legs again.
"No…I just read aloud. You were so brave! I couldn't have stayed outside - "
"I wasn't really brave." Esha interrupted, still chastising herself for her fear. "They were hardly terrifying monsters – I was probably safer than you in the end!"
"But still, I won't forget this." Lucy pressed, shaking her head earnestly.
"What's this?" Edmund asked, darting a glance over his shoulder as he eavesdropped on part of their whispered conversation.
"Nothing." Esha replied a little louder, beginning to look around now.
Coriakin was leading them all down a dimly lit hallway with numerous closed doors leading off from it.
She paused and looked at the detailed decoration around the doors, recognising egg and dart above the frame on the first one. It took her a moment, but she finally realised that the second door was decorated with masks that grinned back at her with unseeing eyes. She supressed a shiver; she'd never been able to abide the masks that wandering performers wore.
She hurried after the group but suddenly felt drawn to a room that was four doors down. Everything was so dim and dusty that it was difficult to distinguish anything, but after straining her eyes she was able to see the complicated and detailed flowers decorating the doorframe. Underneath the dust the elegant swirls looked as though they could be gilded, and every now and then she was sure she could see two human figures amongst the curls, though they were so tiny and filthy that she couldn't be sure.
She was so drawn to the room she barely noticed what she was doing as she turned the handle and stepped into the room, oblivious to the green mist that slithered in after her.