The poll on my profile is still open for you to vote on what you would like to see written next. Currently there is a tie so if anyone is interested in breaking that tie it would be most appreciated :-) Anyway, polls and upcoming stories aside here is the next chapter. This one took three revisions and days of frustrated attempts to make it even slightly presentable, I'm really not sure why it was so difficult.
Susan sighed and rubbed a hand across her forehead, trying to massage away the headache gathering at her temples. She glared across the makeshift council table to where Orieus and Edmund were arguing, seriously considered asking Linus to start barking- thereby forcing them to either shout to be heard or shut up.
"We can't break through the gates; even with the giants you brought they are too strong!" Edmund was glaring up at the general, arms crossed; Orieus glared back, far more intimidating.
"What you are suggesting is impractical and dangerous," Orieus replied, his voice calm but his expression and the twitching of his tail betraying his annoyance. "We do not have enough Gryphons- nor are the ones we have strong enough- to carry the bulk of our army over the walls."
Linus whined and Susan patted his head distractedly. "Why are they arguing?" he asked, looking up at her with puzzled eyes. "Flying sounds fun, we should just agree to fly."
"Hush," said Susan, though not unkindly.
Privately she agreed with the wolfhound, though for different reasons than thinking it would be fun to fly. Edmund's plan, which Orieus was taking such exception to, appeared sound enough to her. The gryphons, of which there were about thirty with the army, would fly a small force over the city walls and deposit them in the castle courtyard. The problem Orieus saw with the plan was mainly that only smaller, lighter Narnians would be able to enter the city in this way and that would leave the Centaurs, giants, and larger Creatures outside the walls, unable to help their comrades should anything go wrong. Despite the clear disadvantages of this, it seemed a better plan than battering against the gates-which would not break- until they ran out of supplies, the giants decided to drop rocks on their heads, or the snow grew deep enough to bury them.
"Do you suggest we give up then? We cannot afford to be caught in the open once winter begins in earnest; we must take the city swiftly or not at all. Would you council me to leave my brother the High King within those walls while we withdraw?" To someone who did not know him, Edmund's voice would have sounded calm and polite, but Susan knew his temper was at its most dangerous when he sounded calmest. Orieus seemed to realise this too, and he shifted his hooves, the annoyance in his expression fading slightly.
"I would give you no such council, your majesty. I would merely advise you not to take rash actions which can only lead to your death and the deaths of everyone who accompanies you." He stamped his hooves to emphasize the point, and Susan had to admit he might be right.
Edmund too seemed to see the sense in his argument, and hesitated for a moment, considering. "I respect your advice, and ordinarily I would follow it. With time we might be able to breach the city or find another, safer way in, but we don't have time. Peter has already been trapped in that city for weeks and I refuse to leave him there any longer than necessary. Tell the Gryphons to prepare."
"King Edmund-"
"That wasn't a request." Susan was shocked by the harshness of Edmund's tone and saw that Orieus, whose dark eyes flashed with anger, was similarly surprised . For a moment she thought he would argue; but instead, he bowed stiffly and trotted away, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like a curse.
Susan watched him go, before turning to Edmund with a glare fierce enough to make even Linus whimper and put his paws over his nose. Edmund however, seemed unaffected by her ire, and barely seemed to notice it as he began studying a map, frowning slightly. "You shouldn't be so harsh with Orieus," she said crossly. "He's trying to do his duty and protect you."
"I know." He didn't look up. "But what else do you expect me to do? No one else has a better plan." He sounded so exhausted that Susan couldn't stay cross with him, even if he had been terribly rude.
"It isn't your fault you know." He still refused to look up from the map, which Susan noticed wasn't even the right way up; avoidance was a classic tactic of his. "Edmund."
"Not now, Susan, please save the lecture for after this is over?" His voice had such a pleading tone that she could not bear to refuse outright.
"Only if I come with you." "Battles are ugly affairs", she remembered Father Christmas telling her not so very long ago, but pushed the thought away impatiently. She pushed away too the memories of other battles she had accompanied her brothers to before she realised just how unsuited her temperament was for battle.
She half expected Edmund to argue with her and was surprised when he merely nodded wearily. "I was rather hoping you would actually; arrows might be our most effective way to kill these giants and you're the best shot with a bow in all Narnia."
Ordinarily Susan would have been pleased with the compliment, but this time Edmund was not encouraging her before a tournament or trying to reassure her on the rare occasions she doubted her ability to fight if the need arose. This would be a battle and it wasn't that Susan could not fight-she could-but that was often what frightened her. She had killed before in battle when she saw her loved ones threatened, her nature above all else was that of a mother, but her natural gentleness-ever at odds with the protectiveness she felt towards her siblings-made the memory of the lives she had taken more bitter still.
"Can I come?" Linus asked, shattering the seriousness of the moment by leaping to his feet, tail wagging enthusiastically. "Please, Queen Susan? Can I come? I'll be quiet as a mouse!" Susan sighed in exasperation and looked helplessly at Edmund.
To her surprise, he smiled fondly at the Dog and nodded. "Although, good cousin, I rather question the accuracy of the saying "quiet as a mouse". Anyone who has ever met a Narnian mouse knows they are far from quiet." Susan smiled at his tone, suddenly very grateful to the Dog for his inexplicable ability to lighten Edmund's dark mood at such a time.
Irrepressible as ever, Linus grinned up at Edmund, tail threatening to scatter the maps and papers from the table. "Then I'll be quieter than a mouse! Is flying really as fun as it looks? Have you flown before? What's it like?" He ran around in a circle, chasing his tail and asking questions all the while. Had it not been for the look of genuine amusement on Edmund's face, Susan would have lost patience with him altogether.
"Linus," Edmund said sternly, though Susan saw the laughter in his eyes. "Being quiet does not involve asking an absurd amount of questions." The wolfhound immediately dropped back on his haunches, tongue lolling out of his mouth as he tilted his head to one side.
"Sorry, your majesty." His tail thumped audibly against the hard-packed earth. "But is flying really as fun as it looks?"
Susan left Edmund to deal with the overly excitable Dog and went to find Lucy, for she at least, Susan had determined, would stay safely outside the walls whether she wanted to or not. Susan did not doubt that Lucy would argue, but she had made up her mind to stand firm on the matter; Lucy was far too young to be involved in what was sure to be a very unpleasant battle. We all are, Susan thought grimly, but that thought she too forced from her mind.
The Gryphons landed in the stone courtyard with barely a whisper of sound as they folded their wings. A moment later, having deposited their passengers safely on the ground, they took off again, circling high above the battlements before turning to fly back towards the army.
The small group made their way across the strangely deserted courtyard, trying as best they could to muffle the clattering made by their armour. Even Linus padded along like a silent grey ghost at Susan's side and Edmund found that he was incredibly grateful for that. Dogs might often be overly excitable and noisy, but they were among the most loyal of creatures and he knew that Linus would protect Susan with his life if necessary.
Trebonius, who Orieus had reluctantly agreed to place in command of the twenty guards accompanying Edmund, motioned questioningly towards the stables and Edmund shook his head silently. It was unlikely they would find anyone there, and it would be a waste of precious time to check. They turned instead towards the main halls, finding to their amazement that the door was not only unbolted but standing open.
Linus paused at the threshold and sniffed the air, hackles rising. "What is it?" Edmund asked softly, motioning the others to stay back. Susan ignored him and joined them at the door, bow drawn in her hands.
"Human," Linus said, sniffing again. "And something that isn't quite." He growled softly, the hair along his neck and shoulders bristling.
Trebonius edged forward, axe in hand, and peered through the doorway. "I'll go first; it may be a trap."
Edmund wanted to argue, but the look on the satyr's face stopped him. Trebonius' duty was to protect them, and regardless of his successes, he still felt responsible for failing to do so when the giants first showed their hostility. That was something Edmund understood all too well himself, and so he nodded.
The satyr stepped through the doorway, paused to look around and took a few cautious steps forward. Nothing happened. He took a few more, still looking about as if he expected a trap to spring at any moment, but still nothing happened. After another moment the others followed him, equally as cautiously and equally without mishap. The whole palace seemed deserted and everyone seemed to feel the terrible sense of unease that created.
Suddenly Linus yelped in surprise and Edmund looked down just in time to see a brightly coloured snake slither between the Dog's paws, hardly seeming to take notice of him. The creature lifted its head for the briefest moment as it slid past the toes of Edmund's boots and hissed, emerald eyes strangely bright, before it continued on, the green of its body standing out brightly against the dull flagstones.
Linus tilted his head to one side, and whined softly in confusion. "I can't smell snake."
They crept forward-far more cautiously now- until they reached the dining hall only to find that it too seemed empty. Linus growled again, barely audible, and Edmund shot him a warning glance before he saw what the Dog had already sensed.
The room was dimly lit by torches on the walls, which threw long, dark shadows across the floor. Edmund recognised the shadows cast by his troupe of Narnians, but across the room, between them and the other door, lay another cluster of shadows that could not have been cast either by the guards or the furnishings of the room.
Motioning for the rest of the guards to stay back, Edmund beckoned to Susan and Trebonius and together the three of them, followed closely by Linus, edged forward around the wall. The shadows remained perfectly still, and for a moment Edmund wondered if he was mistaken and they were merely thrown by the stools or one of the tables. Then, as they stepped past the last table and were nearly to the door, one of the shadows shifted and Edmund turned to the right, towards the movement and came face to face with a terrified group of the Green Lady's servants.
Linus growled and crouched, ready to pounce and likewise Trebonius lifted his axe, but Susan, rather than knocking an arrow and raising her bow, lowered the weapon and shook her head. "I don't believe they mean us any harm," she said quietly.
Edmund was rather inclined to agree with her; the servants didn't look dangerous, only terrified as they crouched half hidden beneath the table. Still, having seen the Green Lady's skill at enchanting others to carry out her will, Edmund knew caution was wise. Not taking his eyes off the group of servants, he edged backwards towards the door, one hand on Susan's arm to guide her. He stopped a moment later when the expressions of terror on their faces grew more pronounced. One girl, the one who had shown him where the stables were so many weeks ago, opened her mouth in a silent scream as she stared, horrorstruck at something directly behind and above his left shoulder.
Susan realised the danger at the same moment he did, and threw herself forward onto the stone floor just as the serpent-now terribly large- thrust its head forward through the doorway like a lance and snapped its huge jaws together in the space so recently vacated by Susan's head. Edmund dragged her back, under the table, and turned to see what had become of the others.
The guards he had left at the other side of the room were standing frozen, staring at the serpent with blank expressions. Trebonius, axe half raised as if to strike, was stumbling back looking dazed as the serpent stared down at him, eyes no longer green but seeming now to dance with flickering flames. Linus alone seemed unaffected, and he was running back and forth in front of the snake, darting forward to snap at the heavy coils of its body and barking frantically. For all his enthusiasm, the snake seemed to take no notice of him and kept her eyes-for Edmund was now certain the serpent and the Green Lady were one and the same-fixed upon Trebonius. He lowered his axe and shook his furry head-as if trying to clear it- before he turned dazedly towards Edmund and Susan.
"Captain?" Edmund stood cautiously and took a step forward.
The satyr blinked, then smiled, raised his axe, and charged. Susan screamed, but Edmund barely heard her as he brought his sword up to block Trebonius' blow, fumbling to shift his shield from his back to his arm at the same time. His sword arm ached with the force of the blow, and he stumbled back cursing, but did not strike back in return.
"I won't fight you!" Steel shrieked against steel as Edmund blocked another blow of the satyr's axe, this time managing to catch the strike on his shield. He stumbled back again, one more step and his back would be against the table;he could retreat no further.
"Then you will die," Trebonius said calmly, teeth bared in a feral grin. He raised the axe again and Edmund knew that if he chose to fight him he could win, but if he refused he would not be able to deflect another blow. His shield was already dented, his arms half numb, and he had nowhere left to retreat. I can't fight him; it isn't his fault! Out of the corner of his eye he saw the serpent still looming in the doorway, waiting to strike until she saw the outcome of her latest enchantment. If I could only get to her, after all, she's the one responsible for this!
But he had no time to formulate a plan or to attempt an attack on her directly. Despite the lack of fault on his part, Trebonius stood firmly between them and the look in his eyes could only be described as murderous. The satyr raised his axe above his head, preparing to strike one last blow against his king, but it never fell. His eyes widened in surprise as he stumbled back, lost his grip on his axe and sank to his knees, a red fletched arrow protruding from his right shoulder.
Susan lowered her bow, face ashen and hands suddenly shaking,while the serpent, with a sudden hiss of fury, struck.
Hopefully that wasn't too bad; I felt rather uninspired writing this until the very end. Thank you for the lovely reviews! That's pretty much all I have to say...Review if you have a spare moment; pretty please?
This has now been looked over by my awesome beta reader, who was forced to add an innumerable amount of commas by my lack of grammatical proofreading. Thank goodness she's patient enough to put up with me! :-) Also, the title of the next chapter is "A Battle of Wills", so expect the action to pick up significantly there! And all this after I said I had no more to say; classic!
Cheers,
A