The longboat holding Chloe, Caspian, Lucy, Edmund, Eustace, and Reepicheep didn't need any rowers seeing as Chloe was able to manipulate the water around them and push their boat to shore. The other boats had about four crewmen rowing, and of all the people, Reepicheep seemed the most excited.
"Onward! The thrill of the unknown lies ahead!" He jumped out onto the dock the moment the boat stopped moving.
Eustace looked over to the setting sun over the horizon annoyed, "Couldn't this have waited until the morning?"
"There is no honor in turning away from adventure, lad," the mouse educated.
Caspian and Chloe slowly made their way up the stairs onto the empty streets, "Listen," Lucy realized how quiet it seemed, "Where is everyone?"
Eustace fell onto the stone steps trying to get off the boat by himself, "You sure he's your cousin by blood?" Chloe asked looking to Edmund.
The group made their way onto the deserted streets, the tension rose when suddenly a loud chime came from the tower in the distance. Caspian aimed his crossbow while a bright purple fire engulfed Chloe's hands. The lot ignored the gasps of shock coming from Eustace as he started muttering to himself about third degree burns.
Once the chimes quieted down the lot of the island was swept with silence once more, "Reepicheep, stay here with Drinian's men and secure the place," Caspian ordered, "We'll head on."
"If we're not back by dawn send a search party," Chloe reminded him before putting out her fire and walking to Edmund's side, leading the way.
"Yes Your Majesty," she heard the mouse answer before scurrying off to rally the men.
The sun was slowly setting, casting a dark shadow over the stone homes as they walked through what appeared to be the center of the town. There was practically no sign of life, even Eustace, who tagged along, went to peek in to one of the windows.
He scurried away and tried to get the attention of the others, "Looks like nobody is in. Do you think we should head back?" He tried.
There was a large wall with a shut door keeping them from going through, Edmund looked to his cousin reluctantly, "Do you want to come here and guard...something?"
"Ah yes!" The young boy ran over, Chloe and Edmund exchanged awkward looks as he approached, "Good idea cousin! Very, uh....logical!"
The four of them were about to leave the child alone before they realized he was unarmed. Chloe sighed, reaching in to her hip scabbard and pulled out her own dagger that she rarely used. It had a black hilt and a long silver blade, "Don't cut yourself," she whispered before turning back to the others.
"I've got it. I've got it. Don't worry!" He lifted his hand up as though trying to reassure them that he was fine. Although seeing him awkwardly holding the dagger with both hands did the exact opposite as the four of them left him out there to enter the stone building. Inside there were statues, and hanging from the ceiling, what looked like bells. The room was otherwise empty except for a table in the middle of the room full of books and other papers, "I'm ready to go when you are!" They could hear Eustace from outside.
Edmund and Chloe carefully approached the book, looking at the writing on the open pages, "Who are all these people?" Lucy asked.
"Why have they been crossed out?" Edmund continued, shining his torch at the paper.
Next to each name was a number, never less than a hundred. That was when Chloe and Caspian realized what it was, "Slave traders."
The chimes sounded overhead once more. Suddenly yells came from above, and men slid down on ropes, "Look out!" Caspian yelled, shooting an arrow from his crossbow at one of the men.
Chloe grabbed her staff from her back and began swinging it at the men dared approach her. Edmund fought with his sword in hand while Lucy brandished her dagger, although it had clearly been a while since she'd last used it.
The four were in the heat of battle when a loud....girlish scream stopped everything. A man walked in, shutting the door behind him, with Chloe's dagger to Eustace's throat.
"Unless you want to hear this one squeal like a girl again...I'd say you should drop your weapons," the man threatened.
"Like a girl!?" Eustace realized.
"NOW!" The man wedged the blade a bit harder against his throat.
Reluctantly; Lucy, Chloe and Caspian put their weapons on the ground while Edmund groaned, "Eustace..." before his sword clanged to the ground.
"Put 'em in irons!" The men approached, grabbing each of them and forcing their hands behind their backs, "Let's bring these three to market," he indicated to Eustace, Lucy and Chloe, "Send those two to the dungeons."
"No!" Chloe tried to wrench herself free without using her ability. If they were going to try to sell her, it would only be worse if they saw what she was capable of.
Caspian was fighting against his chains, "Listen to me, you insolent fool! I am your king!"
A scream ripped through Chloe's throat when she saw one of the men punch Edmund across the face, "EDMUND!"
"You're gonna pay for that!" The boy snapped, unable to nurse his forming bruise.
A new voice pipped up as he approached the struggling group, "Actually...someone else is going to pay...for all of you."
They started dragging away the girls and Eustace. Chloe and Lucy were both screaming for Edmund who watched angrily as his sister and girlfriend were taken away from him, "Don't show them anything Chloe!" Caspian yelled after his best friend, also knowing how much worse it would be if she did any sort of magic around those men.
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The slave traders held Lucy, Chloe, and Edmund with the other slaves to be sold. It wasn't until morning that they noticed there were a few other Narnians in chains, including a faun and a dwarf. They placed chains around their wrists and a big one around their neck, making it nearly impossible to move. Chloe sat between Lucy and Eustace, the three of them watched as men came down the line, picking a few of the slaves and dragging them into a cart.
One of the women they selected started screaming as they drove off. A man and little girl ran after the cart, the woman's husband and daughter, calling for her, "Don't worry! I will find you!" The man screamed when he'd tripped on the floor and the cart kept moving forward.
The three of them watched as they dragged the slaves onto a long boat and pushed them into the ocean. As the boat drifted with no one rowing, the sky seemed to darken, "What's happening?" Lucy whispered, but no one answered as everyone watched the shadow go over the water. In the darkness, a green mist appeared over the water, slowly making its way toward the boat.
The smoke enveloped the people in the boat, for a moment there were screams...until they vanished without a trace. The moment they were gone, the darkness overhead retreated back to wherever it came from, the green smoke melting away. Chloe was shocked, and scared...she lightly grabbed Lucy's hands, more than anything praying Reep was on his way with a search party.
Some of the grimy men approached smiling down at the three of them sinisterly, "Time to go," they unclasped them from the wall and led them to a platform in the center of town where they were to be auctioned off.
"I bid sixty!" "I bid eighty!" "One hundred for the little lady!" "One-twenty!" The men yelled as Lucy stood on next to the auctioneer, "One hundred and fifty!" Another man bid.
"Any more bids?" The man prompted, but when no one raised their hand he grabbed a small sign and put it around Lucy's neck- sold, "Next! We have this fine woman! I tell ya lads, if none of you want her, I'll have a good time with her myself!" He eyed Chloe up and down as she was dragged to the platform.
"One sixty!" "Two hundred!" "Two fifty!" Called a man from the back.
"Sold!" They took his money and put the sign around Chloe, tossing her to the side to bring up Eustace, "Now for this young specimen. Who will kick off the bidding?" It appeared that Eustace's attitude read like a book, and no one wanted a scrawny boy, "Come on now. He may not look like much but he's strong," the auctioneer grabbed hold of the boy's arm, giving it a squeeze.
"Yeah he's strong all right. Smells like the rear end of a Minotaur!" Someone called from the crowd getting laughter from the other men.
Eustace would of course be the only person to worry about what the buyers were saying about him at a terrible time such as that, "That is an outrageous lie!" He exclaimed, "I won the school hygiene award two years running!"
"Come on, someone make a bid!" At this point someone had to buy him just to end everyone else's suffering through it.
From the corner of her eye, Chloe could see Edmund and Caspian being led round the back, "I'll take them off your hands," One man spoke, walking forward with a hood over his face. Chloe swore that the voice sounded very familiar, "I'll take them all off your hands!" The hood was taken off and a smile appeared on the girl's face. It was Reepicheep speaking on Drinian's shoulders.
They'd brought a party of men with them, "For Narnia!" The men screamed as they discarded their disguises and proceeded to fight the slave traders to free their leaders.
Itching to join the fight, Chloe looked down to her metal chains. A smirk made its way onto her face as purple haze clouded her hands, pulling her hands apart she felt the chains tense before snapping down the middle, freeing her. Reepicheep unlocked Lucy from her chains, "Great timing Reep, as always!" She smiled punching one of the traders who had been reaching for her staff.
"Of course your Highness!" Reepicheep bowed before hopping back into battle.
The fight was nasty, but the townspeople joined on the side of the Narnians. They too, had enough of the traders taking them like property. With the slave traders finally defeated and imprisoned, the townspeople cheered for their kings and queens who freed them. Edmund happily kissed Chloe's hands as they walked side by side with Caspian and Lucy back to the long boats.
"Your Majesty? Your Majesty!" A man called running up to them.
Drinian stopped the man from approaching, and Caspian and Edmund quickly raised their weapons defensively. But Chloe ordered his release, "I remember you," she told him, "Your wife had been taken."
"Daddy!" The little girl ran to her father's side.
The man approached Chloe mercifully, "I beg you, take me with you."
Caspian looked to Chloe, "Gael!" A woman called reaching for the girl.
"Daddy I want to come too!" She begged.
But the man stopped her, "No, Gael, stay with your aunt," He turned back to the High King and Queen, "I'm a fine sailor. Been on the seas my whole life."
The rulers looked to each other and nodded, "Of course, you must," Caspian agreed, patting the man's back as they continued on their way to the longboats.
The parade made its way back to the shore, where Lord Rhoop was waiting with something in his hand. As Edmund told Chloe, Lord Rhoop had been imprisoned by the slave traders in hope of ransom.
"My king!" The lord called to Caspian, showing him the old barnacle-filled sword in his hand, "This was given to me by your father. I hid it safely in a cave all these years."
Edmund immediately recognized the carvings, "That's an old Narnian sword."
"It's from your Golden Age," Rhoop nodded, "There are seven such swords, gifts from Aslan to protect Narnia. Your father entrusted them to us," He offered the sword to Caspian, "Here, take it. And may it protect you."
Slowly, Caspian took the old sword, cheers erupted from the spectators, "Thank you, my lord. And we shall find those lost citizens," he promised.
"Alright lady and gentlemen," Chloe prompted, "To the ship!"
"Edmund," Caspian stopped him, offering the old Narnian sword.
Edmund looked to him, as though silently asking if he was sure, before taking the sword into his hand. Caspian smiled before leading the others to the boat. Eustace looked to the grimy sword in disgust before walking away while Chloe watched Edmund's face light up, "I can get you something to scrape the barnacles off," she smiled, offering her hand. Eagerly he took her hand in his, holding the sword in his other hand as the two of them got on the boat, making their way back to the Dawn Treader. As evening came round, Chloe offered Lucy her bed, "Trust me, I've slept in a hammock next to Caspian more than I've slept in that bed anyway," she reassured before dragging Edmund into a hammock with her.
That night Edmund stayed up thinking about what she said. Why was she staying up with Caspian? His jealousy bubbled as Chloe slept peacefully with her head on his chest, wrapping her arm around him. In the hammock next to them slept Caspian, and on the other side of the room Eustace was writing in his diary, "You're still up are you? Worried she may be cheating on you?" He remarked.
"Butt out Eustace," Edmund muttered so as not to wake the others.
"Well I'd be worried if I were you," The young boy told him, "He's fairly better looking than you, and she's way out of your league," he stated turning his back to Edmund to write in peace.
Thoughts continued to swim through Edmund's mind, he looked down at Chloe's sleeping face, a small smile played on her lips as she snuggled closer to him.