Chronicles of the Golden Bond: Book 2: The Broken Rings

Chapter 1: Torn Veils


Rain fell like sheets from the heavens, blurring everything around the gathered crowd. It splashed against the ground and up on the clothes of the people gathered. Despite umbrellas and broad brimmed hats, they were soaked, but you could not tell from their black funeral garbs.

There were too few gathered there.

The priest was saying something beside the coffin, his words drowned out by the rain. Everything around them was drowning, blurring… disappearing.

The woman just watched the coffin, silently, and without understanding.

It was as if the noise from the rain made it impossible to think or feel. To know. To see… And yet, she did. She knew what had happened. Had been the one to find her.

Accident, people had said.

Nature.

She could not believe them. Could not believe that this was what was meant to happen. Nature did not do this – She knew it had not been nature nor accident!

She was drowning in the sound of falling water.

When they lifted the coffin into the ground, the woman's painful cry joined the rain as she fell to her knees. As the umbrella slipped from her hands, its tip cut through the rain, like a knife through a veil.


.o.O.o.


The cloth tore right down the middle, frayed threads billowing in the air, as thing as spider silk.

Lucy was anything but happy. She was running late and currently looking straight down on an 18-month-old with a positively shredded veil in his chubby little hands. Her foster-son looked back up at her with all the innocent glee of a toddler.

Well… Maybe anything but happy was an exaggeration, she allowed, as she fought to keep a smile back.

Life had been so much easier before he learned how to walk.

"Kit," she sighed, trying hard to keep her exasperation out of her voice. "That was supposed to be for tomorrow." She picked up the toddler with the sorry pieces of cloth, allowing him to keep waving them in the air as she did so. Despite her frustration at the ruined veil, her smile broke free at his innocent glee.

"Mommy!" he grinned, pushing it against her cheek. "Feel. Is soft."

"Yes, Kit, the veil is soft," she told him lovingly as she carried him out the dressing room and through the royal bedchambers. "It is made of silk, you know."

He burrowed his head against her collar bone, making happy sounds. His snow-white hair tickled her skin as he did so.

Uldra met them by the nursery, looking rather frazzled, wringing her paws.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I just don't know how he does it! I look away for two seconds and then-" The badger gasped when she saw what he held in his hands. "Oh no! Your veil!"

"It's fine Uldra," Lucy smiled. "He only made it to the dressing room."

"Here!" Kit exclaimed, holding out the ripped cloth to his nursemaid. "Feel. Soft."

Uldra's nose twitched as she took the cloth. She made a show out of letting it slide through her paws and feeling it. Soft was his word of the week and he had been enjoying finding things to show them.

"It is very soft, little one. It was a very expensive piece of silk too," she sighed. "Your father is not going to be amused."

Lucy blew out a breath of air with a laugh.

"Caspian is going to get over it," she said, handing the toddler to Uldra. "He'll just be happy that Kit didn't get a hold of the dress. Would you put the rest of the cloth on the table next door? I don't want him playing with it when we're not around just in case he decides to swallow it."

Uldra made a thoughtful sound, looking the cloth over.

"I suppose it'll still make for some nice dress gloves…" she considered out loud.

Lucy bent to kiss Kit on the forehead and smile thankfully at the badger.

"I'm sure it will, or something else," she said, knowing that she would never want to wear gloves for any other reason than snow. "Look, I've really got to hurry. I need to change before the people from Calormen arrives. I'm sorry I'm so busy these days, with the ambassadors and dignitaries arriving, I've just-"

Uldra waved her off.

"Never you mind, dear, I enjoy watching him. You go do your work and we'll see if we can't get a cake or two out of old Cook, won't we, Kit?"

"Cake!" Kit squealed happily.

Lucy returned to the dressing room, shaking her head. At least she knew that Cook would limit the cookies to one or two, even if he too had a heart of butter when it came to the royal couple's young ward.

Her maid, Helin, had arrived while she had delivered Kit to the nursery and quickly helped her change her dress.

Sometimes she still marveled at how her life had turned out. How she had been pulled back to Narnia, to help fight the White Witch and her serves. How she had died and ended up soul-tied to the love of her life. How she had taken in an orphan. Ended up married and a mother, to live the rest of her life in Narnia.

It was everything she ever wanted, things she never expected and more.

She and Caspian had been married since the war, through the golden bond between their souls, and although that was already a year and a half ago, the official wedding had not taken place yet.

As soon as she had changed, and Helin had helped settle the ancient diadem amongst her curls, she made her way down the hallways of Cair Paravel, towards the throne hall. The more casual dress she had worn for her morning tasks would have been an insult to the visitors… The ones that were there for the wedding.

Her wedding. Her and…

Caspian met her in the room behind the throne hall. He was messing with his cuffs, trying to straighten them, before he gave a shrug and pushed them up to his elbows instead.

Lucy laughed fondly, her heart thrilling at the way his eyes lit up when he saw her, the smile that spread on his lips.

"You'll wrinkle the shirt," she told him, pulling them back down and fixing them. He was dressed in a silk shirt and a brocade vest in the same blue shade as her dress. Like her, he was wearing his crown. "There." She looked up at him as she finished smoothing the cloth.

"Thank you. You look beautiful," he told her softly, leaning in to kiss her. She kissed him back, holding on for as long as she felt she could before they pulled apart. "We should go, greet our guests…"

"Yes-" Lucy breathed. She sent him a glance through lowered lashes, as they stepped through the door and into the great hall beyond. The responding mischief in his eyes as he offered her his arm told her that he knew they would be continuing that later. "Let's face the crowd."

Her hand on his arm, they stepped into the throne hall side by side, to face the newest arriving guests and former enemies of both Narnia and Telmar.

The doors swung closed behind them.


.o.O.o.


There was nobody in the room. The bachelor apartment was cluttered, but mostly clean, and told the story of a young man with varied interests. There was academic books on shelves and on the desk, and different sports equipment strewn about. A coat hung haphazardly over the back of the room's single chair.

Her heart pounded against her chest as she stepped inside and locked the door behind her.

The landlady had let her up when she claimed to be the sister of the man who lived there. It had been easy enough, since she knew things about him only a sister could… She would have had to wait for him in the hallway, if not for the spare key she had found behind the loose brick in the wall. Instead, she was inside his rooms.

Slowly, so as not to make any noise, she moved to his desk. She started sorting through the papers on it, moving aside anything work related… She found a few letters from his actual siblings, reading them fast, before putting them aside as well.

Her fingers shook with frustration. There was not anything she could use in them.

She continued her search, looking in his closets and checking behind the singular painting in the room, and finding nothing.

Then she looked under the bed and found a battered leather suitcase. Hope almost chocked her, as she pulled it out and opened it. It was full of old things: A flashlight, a chess piece that looked like gold, a pair of shoes and other such things. And envelopes.

She picked up one and turned it over, shivering.

It was for his cousin, if she remembered the name right, and as she opened it, she found that it was true.

Reading, her eyes widened. Slowly she pulled the handkerchief hidden with the letter from the envelope and unfolded it carefully. Without waiting or considering, she grasped what it held.

And when the renter of the apartment returned, he found his door locked, his things a mess, and nobody inside.

When he saw the opened letter and the missing rings, Edmund swore.


.o.O.o.


The arrangements had all been made ahead of time, because as much as the wedding invitation was a gesture of peace, it was also a demonstration of strength. Along one side of the room stood the ambassadors from the many islands where Caspian had made friends on the voyage of the Dawnthreader. Present was the Duke and Duchesss of Francor of the kingdom of Archenland, who had also arrived for the wedding celebrations. There were representatives from every major people under Narnia's flag. Even a gnarled little man, a goblin ambassador, had joined them… Although Lucy did not quite know how to feel about him. Along the other side of the hall, Centaur guards were posted, effortlessly holding claymores like crosses over their chest. New Narnian soldiers stood unobtrusively along the upper floor balcony.

A very careful balance was at play, for every show of power would need to be casual and un-threatening, or that too could be an insult. A shield covered in flowers.

Sunlight fell down from the large glass dome above the hall, built during the last year, to account for the needs of the dormant willow. Its branches hung in soft arches from the ceiling, its silver leaves like celebrative garlands. The air was warm and happy, giving the artfully arranged attendants a peaceful presence.

The herald at the door pounded his staff against the floor three times.

"May I present the Heir of Calormen, His Royal Highness, Prince Tasharan the Fifth, and his sister, Tarkheena Tirava," he called out to the quietly waiting court.

Prince Tasharan and Tarkeena Tirava entered, the younger sister with her hand gingerly placed on her brother's arm as he led her up the isle, towards Lucy and Caspian. Like them, they were dressed in what had to be some of their best finery for the occasion, in red and golden robes that dragged on the floor behind them. A myriad of rings decorated their fingers, necklaces hung around their necks, and bangles on their wrists. Even their belts were embroidered with fine metals and gemstones.

Lucy could not help but wonder just how heavy those garments had to be and felt a silent relief that Narnian clothes were of a simpler fashion.

As they neared, Lucy searched their faces for similarities between them and their ancestors.

The woman's face was covered by a veil, so all that were visible was her large dark eyes. Her hair too, was wound up in a piece of silk, so exquisite it seemed to shimmer in the sunrays.

The man's, however, was visible beneath his turban. Suntanned skin, dark eyes, and sharp eyebrows, much like what was visible of his sister's. His nose was long and straight, settled above a finely shaped moustache and a pointy goatee, oiled and well kept. His lips were slender, his jaw triangular… The resemblance to his ancestor, the Tisroc Rabadash was vague, and if there at all, no more than any other Calormene. That soothed Lucy, for her experiences with Rabadash had not been pleasant.

When they stopped in front of the Narnian King and Queen, the Calormenes bend their heads in greeting, one bending slightly at the waist, the other lowering herself in a subtle curtsy. Their personal guards, who had followed them in, kneeled beside them, lowering their heads completely.

"We greet you on this blessed day, on behalf of our father, the great Tisroc Aravandir, may he live forever," Tasharan said in stilted Narnian. "We are most pleased by the invitation, and to be included in this great occasion, under the sun."

"Many well wishes and joys be with you," Tirava told them, her eyes lowered. "Our congratulations and our family's as well."

Caspian and Lucy smiled at them both.

"Welcome, both of you, and thank you for your gracious words," Caspian said. "We hope your journey was swift and pleasant, and that you will find your stay here most agreeable as well. Please, let me introduce my wife-to-be." He held out his hand and Lucy laid hers atop it as she took a small step forward. "This is Lucy Pevensie, daughter of Eve, and Queen of Old."

Tasharan bowed to her, his expression unchanged, but Lucy caught the small rise of Tirava's eyebrows.

"My family has sat on Narnia's thrones all the way back to the end of the Age of Winter," she told them, that open and sweet smile on her lips which belied the strength at her core. She looked down, almost playfully, as Caspian bit back a grin. "When I returned to Narnia a few years ago, it was revealed, and since, I have been by Caspian's side."

"And now you are to be wedded," Tirava concluded, a musical lilt to her voice. "A love match?"

Lucy nodded and glanced at Caspian. The tender way he met her eyes, had heat rising to her cheeks.

"Indeed."

Caspian gave her hand a small squeeze before letting it go.

"But you have travelled far, and we are keeping you here with pleasantries, when I am certain you would like to inspect your living quarters and rest. There will be a grand welcome ball this evening, where you may meet the rest of court and our other esteemed guests." He motioned for Joel to step forward, from his place by the wall. Like the rest of the gathered, he was in his finest clothes and official uniform as Caspian's manservant. "Joel here will show you to your chambers. If there are anything you would like brought to you or changed, please tell him, and he will see it done."

Once more there was an exchange of thanks and compliments, before the Calormenes and their guards, made their way out of the hall. The Calormene royalty and their followers had been granted almost an entire wing of the palace to themselves and their staff, and already, the palace servants would have helped bring their luggage in and unpack. Everything would be ready for the easy use of the Prince and his sister before they made it to the rooms.

Lucy let go of a breath as the throne hall emptied out and she and Caspian left from their back entrance.

So far, so good.

Now to get through the ball tonight and then tomorrow… the wedding.

As they were leaving, Lucy stopped walking for a second – Long enough for Caspian to stop and look back at her.

"What is it?" he asked.

Lucy looked sheepishly at him.

"I need to find out what I'm going to wear on my head tomorrow," she told him.

"Oh no…" Understanding dawned on his face.

"Yeah… Kit got hold of the veil," she said, and when she could not help laughing at the look on his face, Caspian joined her with a shake of his head. "It was very soft."


.o.O.o.


Gasping for air, the woman broke through the surface, kicking and sobbing with every breath. Salt burned in her nostrils and eyes, hair clinging to her face and making it hard to see.

She was in the ocean. The undertow pulling at her and her coat and dress as she fought to stay afloat.

Again and again she screamed for help as the waves battered her, but there were no ships around, and no sign of shore.

When something grabbed hold of her ankle and pulled her under, she had already given up.

And the cold and dark below claimed everything.


.o.O.o.


A/N:

Okay, so I admit it. I missed the story. A lot.

So here it is, the sequel, which I've taken to calling the Broken Rings.

Hopefully you'll enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed planning it out and am currently enjoying writing it.

Below, a little information for those who have only watched the movies, so that you have all the relevant information for this story.


For those who haven't read the books;

Rabadash was the son of the Tirock back when Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter were still Kings and Queens in Narnia. Susan once rejected him for marriage, to which he responded by attempting to bring an army to Narnia, by first conquering Archenland. His plans were fouled by a lost prince of Archenland, and Aslan ended up turning Rabadash into a Donkey... He could only stay human in the capital of Calormen and the rest of his rule was peaceful.

His descendants however continued their imperialism, and pressed North to conquer further. Despite the Telmar originally being Calormen, they ended up in conflict with the Empire, and when Calormen pressed to take them, they ran to Narnia and took power there. (Hence Calormen was in part to blame for the Telmar invasion of Narnia).

Calormen also held the Lone Islands and operated the slave-business there, all the way up until the Voyage of the Dawntreader, where Caspian re-took the Lone Islands.

Hence the political relationship between Narnia and Calormen is far from stable.


.o.O.o.