Night Terror

"…True is false. Who is who? Curl of lip. Swirl of gown. Masquerade! Seething shadows, breathing lies. Masquerade…Run and hide -but a face will still pursue you."

~ 'Masquerade,' The Phantom of the Opera, Andrew Lloyd Webber

~o*o~

Peter made it to his room without mishap. He was afraid the girl would follow him, but he was half pleased and half sorry to see that she had fainted…or at least pretended to.

Somehow, he managed to find another doublet that would go reasonably well with his costume, then went back into the hallway. He started as the flames of the candle in the sconces flickered. A huge dark shadow was coming down the hallway.

Peter turned towards the shadow as a man appeared around the corner, looking half sinister in his domino costume. One half of his face was white, the other black, and his eyes glittered strangely in the flickering light.

"Lord Peridan," Peter said.

The latter did not answer, but in one swift motion, drew a long bladed knife that flashed golden.

Shocked, Peter took a step backwards and stumbled as Lord Peridan leaped for him. Peter was aware of the flash of a knife blade and he ducked aside avoiding the blow. He groped at his side where Rhindon usually hung, but remembered that he had left it at the end of his bed. Then in a flash, he remembered the dagger King Lune had given him and ripped it out of his boot. He felt the sting of Peridan's blade on his back as he drove his own home.

Peridan's body crumpled to the floor. Peter stepped back as a black puddle stretched across the flagstones. The others!

Peter turned and ran.

~o*o~

Susan stood alone, her back against a column. Lord Dar had gone to get her some punch because she was feeling rather hot. It would take him awhile to get back, she thought, navigating through that crowded room…and there was no north star for a guide in there.

Susan looked up to see Lord Dar returning. He had put the brown horse head back on and she was mildly surprise to see that he wasn't bringing any punch.

Silently, he came to stand next to her, half in the shadows.

"Is the punch gone?" Susan asked, "Or is the crowd too thick?"

Lord Dar did not reply and Susan turned to look at him. He was gone.

The next moment, a strong hand clamped over her mouth and dragged her backwards. She kicked, but it was no use. She saw the brown horse head hovering over her. Lord Dar? But…!

He opened a side door and suddenly they were both outside in the freezing air. The long line of yellow light from the door looked very stark on the shadowed snow.

Suddenly Lord Dar moaned and fell backwards, dragging her with him. Peter was above her, pulling her up.

"Are you all right? Susan!"

She nodded dumbly, "Your hands are bloody."

"Where are Lucy and Edmund?" Peter demanded, wiping his hands on his doublet.

Susan opened her mouth to answer, then an earth-shattering scream echoed through the air.

For one moment, Peter thought it was coming from her, but he saw in a moment it didn't. He grabbed her hand and dragged her back through the door.

Somebody else was screaming and there were shouts. Then he saw Lucy standing a few feet away, her eyes as wide as saucers, a bloody gash on her shoulder. Edmund was kneeling on the floor next to the body of Lord Darrin. The white horse head was still covering his face. There was a crash as King Lune vaulted over the table on the dais, scattering the pyramid of fruit.

"Darrin!" King Lune cried.

Peter dropped Susan's hand and leapt forward. Everything became vividly clear to him and his heart tightened, half with relief and half with fear. Just about to leap on Edmund from behind was himself. The same lion mask, the same golden doublet.

Peter launched himself at the imposter and they rolled across the floor. The other Peter struck him a hard blow on the head and somebody kicked him in the back. Peter's head spun and somebody was hauling him to his feet. It was Lord Peridan.

Peter had lost his dagger, but he managed to wrestle Lord Peridan to the ground. The room was whirling. Something struck him on the head. The world went dark.

~o*o~

"I think he's coming 'round."

"Someday he is going to be quite a formidable fighter."

"If he lives that long."

Peter's head was roaring. He opened his eyes and faces crowded into his vision.

"Sorry I had to bump you on the head," King Lune said, looking at him, "but you were about to strangle Lord Peridan."

"He tried to murder me," Peter said, trying to sit up. "Someone has tried to murder all of us."

"Look," King Lune moved aside revealing the dead man who had been masquerading as Lord Darrin, "He's a Telmarine. The other was a Telmarine too. The one trying to be you got away."

Peter sat for a moment digesting this.

"Then there is one dressed as Lord Peridan in the hallway outside my door," Peter said.

"Four of them then," King Lune said heavily, "You're not safe, even here."

"How's Lucy?" Peter asked, slowly climbing to his feet.

"The scratch on her shoulder is not serious," King Lune replied, "Deidre and your sister are seeing to her now."

Peter looked around himself. Everyone stood around with concern written on their faces – Edmund, Flavis, Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, Lord Dar, Chibb, Lord Darrin, Lord Peridan…

"I'm really sorry I tried to kill you," Peter said, offering a hand, "I didn't realize-"

"I didn't realize. You were both dressed the same," Lord Peridan interrupted, taking his hand. "I'm afraid it's mostly my fault the last assassin got away."

"He really did get away, then?" Peter asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," King Lune said, "Martin is conducting a search of the castle, but I doubt the fellow will be found – the villain…deserves to be hanged."

"What happened before I arrived?" Peter asked, "I came as quickly as I could after that chap attacked me in the hallway."

"Someone disguised as Lord Darrin - " Edmund began.

"Two faced, scheming, good for nothing…" Lord Darrin muttered.

"Someone disguised as Lord Darrin," Edmund continued, "Pulled out a knife and tried to stab Lucy right in plain sight. She managed to duck and I finished him off with the dagger Father Christmas gave me," Edmund turned rather green, "After that you came charging in and tackled yourself and we didn't know which was which. I wish you'd taken the trouble to take off your mask beforehand."

Peter grinned and thumped Edmund in the shoulder, "Just glad everybody's in one piece."

~o*o~

After the assassination attempts, Martin, or other bodyguards were not far from the sides of the four children. Peter had four stitches in his back and Lucy got five in her shoulder, she was always proud to say she had one more than him.

As soon as Peter was well enough, Martin began to instruct him and Edmund in the martial arts.

Martin was a great teacher and he hardly knew it. He himself had taught the greatest swordsmen in the land, king Lune included. And only he would teach the future kings of Narnia.

They started with wooden cudgels and they learned quickly. Martin saw at once that they had a gift for this art. Swordsmanship is truly an art; it is not blundering or sheer luck, but experience and skill. One must be light on his feet, watching at all times, alert. It is a dance, a deadly dance and when they stopped using wooden clubs and used swords, they had to start using armor and shields as well. He pushed them beyond what they thought they could do and they learned their true strength.

But, they started with simple parries. Martin had the great advantage because he was taller so he had them fight with Lord Peridan while he looked on.

"I won't try to kill you this time," Lord Peridan had said. "Your highness,"

"And I won't try to kill you," Peter had said, "I'm not king."

Peter was, as Edmund put it, the most reluctant king in history. But, Edmund stopped teasing Peter about it when Peter pointed out that Edmund would be a king too.

Martin was increasingly thrilled with his students; he had never had better, though he never told them. Soon they were almost a match for Peridan. Peter was taller and stronger then Edmund and showed more skill, he was a true fighter, like a lion. Edmund was smaller, but was left-handed, giving him an advantage.

Martin didn't just teach them swordsmanship. He taught them how to use their bodies as weapons, as well. They could box, wrestle and throw and a man to the floor. They learned to fight on horseback and Lord Paladin taught them how to climb, as they were often see scaling the castle walls, much to the dismay of Susan and Deidre and delight of Lucy. Both the girls and the boys learned archery, and spear throwing from Lord Twang and learned knife throwing from Flavis.

Flavis taught them other things too. Every morning, Deidre saw to it that the four children were in his office. There he taught them history, geography, mathematics, grammar and even the old language that the people in Ettinsmoor spoke.