The Lone Isles seemed to be a far journey from anywhere, and as they sailed, it seemed they only got further from civilisation. None of them were water bound creatures, so their prolonged exposure to the sea was a challenge in itself. However, only Eustace found it to be more difficult than Aramis.
This voyage was his first experience on a boat, and it was bound to be his last. He didn't trust the way it moved on the waves. It was far to easy to topple and reassert itself.
When land eventually came into view, it was like they had struck gold. Beyond the beaches stretched a mass of vegetative land spanning over the whole island, leaving only the cliff faces towards them bare. The only issue was that this place also seemed to unoccupied.
"It looks uninhabited." Caspian observed through his telescope, eyeing up the spaces where their boats could dock. "But if the lords followed the mist East, they would have stopped here."
"Could be a trap." Drinian grunted, sceptically.
"Not everywhere is like the Lone Isles." Aramis countered, softly. "And anyway, this could be a good chance to restock our food stores."
"It could hold some answers." Edmund shrugged, seeing the benefit to both sides of the argument. "Caspian?"
Folding up the telescope, he handed off to Drinian, who would probably find more use for it in the mean time. "We'll spend the night on shore, scour the island in the morning." He nodded to Aramis, and the spirit bowed his head in return.
"Aye, your Majesty."
It didn't take very long for the boats to sail over to the beaches. They chose a small bay as their resting space, which cut off any wind that might have come their way. One of the men built the fire for them all to sleep around, with the Kings and Queen closest to the middle.
They had, thankfully, decided against sleeping on the beach. It was a space slightly off the coast where the grass had only just started to grow. Their backs were bound to ache, but they had been in worse conditions. At least there was warmth, and they had each other.
Most of the crew fell asleep rather quickly, the journey to get to the island had been a long one. Aramis, however, found that he was more awake than he had ever been. He and Edmund were afforded very little time together, especially in such confined quarters. When they sat beside one another, it was hard to ignore the fact that they were able to speak. It was all they wanted to do.
Neither of them were particularly mushy people, but it was difficult not to be emotional when faced with someone so wonderful. Aramis had so many words ready to spill from his mouth, but none of them made it out.
"It's beautiful here." The spirit sighed as he stared up to the sky, marvelling at the stars. "I've never seen anything like it."
"Me neither." Edmund agreed, clasping Aramis' hand in his own. "The sky looks so different."
"It's another tribe."
"From yours?" It was always interesting for the freckled boy to hear of Aramis' life before him, and learn so much that he never would have learnt from anywhere else. "Who are they?"
"There..." His hand pointed upwards to the left section. "Is the Harfee Tribes." And then he gestured to the right. "And this is the Olimar Tribe."
"How can you tell them apart?"
"There is a colour to shine of a star." Aramis twisted his body so that he was lying on his side, facing Edmund. "Which indicates the tribe they devoted their life to."
"Is that why you wear white?" His fingers traced the tissue lines over the spirit's palm.
He nodded. "It is the colour of my tribe."
"Thank you." Edmund kissed the back of his hand, gently, not wanting to bombard him with emotions so out of the blue. "For sharing yourself with me."
It was easy to fall asleep as they looked to the skies, even when it wasn't Aramis' immediate family watching over him. Edmund kept the spirit close in his dreams, as his head rested upon his chest. It was the most content they had ever been with one another, and yet, he did not sleep for hours.
There was a still to the night. When Aramis fell asleep, and deep into a dream, it felt like it could have lasted forever. But nothing could do that. Nothing was destined to last forever, even the last spirit.
And then he couldn't breathe.
His head became dizzy, and muddled, but he couldn't breathe. There was nothing as terrifying as gasping for breath, and it being stolen, with no cause to change. He had no say in it at all.
A hand covered his mouth, dragging over his scar tissue, and forcing him closer. Another hand kept his body from moving, and it felt like he was flying, only not in a good way. He was weightless, and bound to the creature holding him captive. Though, when he looked around, all he saw was Lucy. She was floating too, and struggling in the same way he was.
Tears pricked his eyes, and it became a sudden realisation that he was going to die. Breathing must've have been as important for whoever was holding him. They didn't seem to understand his biological need.
He was dragged backwards through an abundance of bushes and hedges, and into a spacious land, not far outside of a maze. Again, it was another beautiful place. If it hadn't been so terrifying of a moment, then he would have enjoyed just existing in its space. That was when they were dropped, harshly. And still, there was no one there.
"Are you okay, my Queen?" Aramis stood, clambering over to Lucy in order to check her over. He couldn't care for himself.
"I'm fine." She replied, drawing her dagger from her belt. "Are you?"
"Always, my Queen."
It took no time at all for the blade to be knocked from her hands- almost as soon as she stepped forwards. She attempted to run away, but something knocked her back. Aramis admired her fight, but that wasn't in him. He couldn't bare to destroy himself anymore. Whilst she huddled beside the mound she was thrown against, he just stood.
If this was it, and if he was going to die, then he would do it with dignity. He could do it for his people, and for those he loved dearly.
"There is no escape." A voice, gruff, and angry spoke up.
A second replied. "Well put."
"Scary." Agreed a third.
"Yeah." Said a fourth.
It was hard to know how many people they were around, especially as they couldn't see them. There could have been hundreds, acting as a swarm, praying on those they thought were the weakest. They would have been right, in Aramis' sense, but not in Lucy's. She was worth saving so much more than he was.
"What are you?" She asked, brave enough to speak up.
"We are terrifying invisible beasts."
"If you could see us, you would be really intimidated."
"Yeah."
"Yeah."
"Uh, you forgot to mention that we are very large!"
The voices began to close in on them as Aramis stumbled backwards. "Well, what do you want?" Lucy asked again.
"You." One said. "You'll do what we asked."
"She will."
"Very clear."
"Well put."
"Yeah."
Fiercely, the Queen stood, and retaliated. "Or what?"
"Death!" Shouted one before it became a chant, surrounding them. "Death! Death! Death!"
Lucy just shook her head. "Well, we wouldn't be much use to you dead, now, would we?"
"I hadn't thought of that."
"No, you hadn't."
"Fair point."
"Alright. Then we'll just kill your friends." They oo-ed in awe of their own idea like children. They were becoming less frightening by the minute.
"Good idea."
"Yeah." They were pathetic.
"What do you want with us?"
"You will enter the house of the Oppressor." A shove came into their backs, pushing them into the direction of nothing at all.
"What house?" Aramis managed to find his voice, eventually, only to be answered by a large building appearing out of thin air.
"This one."
It resembled some of the greatest looking houses in London, and filled Lucy with a sort of longing for her home. The brickwork was fine, and complimented the surroundings perfectly. It didn't stand out too far that it ruined the islands beauty. Truly, it was supposed to be there.
Aramis could hear the faint noise of a latch rattling, and the front door opened up to reveal the insides, which were far more ornate than the outside.
"Upstairs, you'll find the Book of Incantations. Recite the spell that makes the unseen seen."
"Well put, Chief, well put."
They were given no time at all to even think about what they were going to do, because it couldn't be so simple as to read from a book when they were prompted again. "Come on. We haven't got all day."
"Remember what will happen to your friends."
"You've been warned!"
Aramis still found himself jealous at the hands of Lucy's courage. "Why don't you do it yourselves?"
Solemnly, and clearly humiliated, one responded. "We can't read."
"We can't write either as a matter of fact."
"Or add."
"Yeah."
It seems ridiculous that they couldn't just ask for help normally, because it would have been given without a second thought. This was the wrong route, the selfish one. "Why didn't you just say so?"
"Beware the Oppressor."
"He's very oppressive."
"What makes the unseen seen, got it?"
Lucy was the first to step inside of the house, and she beckoned for Aramis to follow, but he was far too nervous. It took a forceful pull to get him to even step in the right direction. And when he was finally inside, the door slammed shut, locking them there with no way of escape.
They had no idea the impact of their abduction upon the camp, and the lengths they were willing to go to just to return them back unharmed. There was no one more willing to do those things than Edmund.
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1750
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Disclaimer!!!!
I do not own these characters. I do not own the Narnia series. I do not own the actors, or the characters. The only thing I own is my adaptation of the story, and my original character.