His Majesty, Her Grace - Sequel to A Prince Caspian Love Story

Chapter 17 - Mutiny

"Big ears," Eustace mutters.

"I heard that too."

Everyone laughs, the heavy atmosphere instantly lifting from the crew.

When we get ashore, Ed, Lucy, Caspian, and I set out to find any sign of the Lords. It's doesn't take us too long to find a thick rope tied around point rock, leading into what looks to be a giant cave system.

"Look! We're not the first ones on this island." Caspian says, jogging towards the rope.

"The lords?" I ask.

"Could be." Caspian picks up a small stone and tosses it down the crevice. It bounces and echoes all the way to the bottom. My guess is it's maybe twenty or thirty feet deep.

"What do you think could be down there?" Lucy asks.

"Let's find out," Ed says.

He goes first, Caspian second, Lucy, then me last. The cave is quiet and even though sunlight is streaming through holes in the rock ceiling, it feels eerie. There are thick columns of stone holding the place up and different sized pools of water everywhere. We follow Edmund to the one closest to the entrance and there's a gold statue-looking thing at the bottom of it.

"What's that?" Capsian asks.

"I don't know, looks like some sort of gold statue," Ed says. He faces the wall and pulls a thick root from the dirt. He comes back and sticks it into the pool, poking at the statue. He stands up straight again, the stick shaking in his hands before it starts to turn to pure gold. I can see him struggle to hold it up as it gets heavier and heavier as the gold spreads but he drops it and stumbles backward. I grab his arm and pull him away before he falls in and turns to gold himself.

Caspian and I gape at one another, hoping the other has an explanation but I simply shrug my shoulders. That was bizarre.

"He must have fallen in."

"Poor man," I mutter.

"You mean poor lord." Ed corrects, motioning to the man's shield that's laying at the bottom.

"The crest of Lord Restimar," Caspians says.

"And his sword!" I point at the still silver weapon a few feet under the surface of the pool.

"We need it."

Edmund draws his sword and reaches out to slip the blade under the hilt of its sister.

"Be careful," Lucy says.

Ed manages to get a good hook on it and slowly pulls it out. Caspian holds his arm so he doesn't fall and takes it.

"The sword hasn't turned to gold." He says.

"Looks like the swords are magical," I say.

"He mustn't have known what hit him," Lucy says.

"Maybe..." Edmund sets his sword down. "Or maybe he was on to something."

"What are you talking about?" Capsian asks, rolling his shoulders back curiously.

Edmund picks up one of the many seashells littering the floor, dips it in the water, and sets it down before the gold curse reaches his hand. He holds it like it's the answer to all our problems, the greed growing in his eyes making me feel uneasy.

"What are you staring at?" Lucy asks, beating me to it.

"Whoever has access to this pool, could be the most powerful person in the world." He says hungrily. "Lucy. We'd be so rich, no one could tell us what to do or who to live with."

"You can't take anything out of Narnia Edmund," Caspian says sternly.

"Says who?"

"I do."

Edmund's wild eyes shift to Caspian and he stands up, grabbing his sword.

"I'm not your subject." Edmund spits.

"You've been waiting for this, haven't you? To challenge me. You doubt my leadership."

"You doubt yourself," Edmund shouts, his voice echoing off the walls.

I know that struck a nerve so I reach out to try and calm Caspian down but he hardly notices my hand on his shoulder.

"You're a child," Caspian says.

"And you're a spineless sap!"

"Edmund." Lucy tries to pull him away but he shakes her hand off.

"I'm tired of playing second fiddle. First, it was Peter and now it's you. You know I'm braver than both of you."

Caspian's face grows hard in anger with a hint of disbelief at the High King challenging him.

Edmund continues. "Why do you get Peter's sword? I deserve a kingdom of my own. I deserve to rule."

"If you think you're so brave... Prove it!" Caspian shouts and I back away from him as he roughly shoves Edmund away. They both swing their swords around, the clash of metal vibrating violently off the stone walls. The force of their weapons forces them apart for a split second that Lucy and I take full advantage of.

"No!" I shout and step in Caspian's way.

"Stop it!" Lucy yells, doing the same but with her brother. "Both of you."

"Look at yourselves," I say desperately.

"Can't you see what's happening? This place has tempted you, it's bewitching you." Lucy says.

Realization flickers across Caspian's face and he shoots me an apologetic look.

"It's exactly what Coriakan was talking about... Let's just get out of here." I walk away, Lucy on my heels. Caspian told me the truth to try to avoid a situation like this. I can't blame them for having an argument, it's been a long time coming. I just wish that it hadn't gotten so heated. I make sure both of them are following peacefully, letting Lucy go first, then Edmund.

"I'm sorry," Caspian says.

He looks genuinely sorry, and of course, I understand. It was a moment of weakness.

"I know, but I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," I say quietly and press a gentle kiss to his jaw.

He nods solemnly.

"Now help me out of this creepy cave."

~~~
Thank you for reading!
Next week on Wednesday, I will be updating both this fanfic and the Sirius Black one that I also have going at the moment. I decided to do this to celebrate a personal holiday so I hope you guys will enjoy it!
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