Amelia remained silent as the guards dragged her and Acmon to the throne room. She made no effort to fight-she was surprisingly calm. Acmon was covered in scratches and wounds from head to toe, but his injuries did not stop him. He was a constant struggle for the ogres that hoisted him on their shoulders. Amelia wished she could fight, but she knew there was no point. There was no one to save her now, and for a strange reason, that was okay.
The moment the large wooden doors opened, the screaming of the witch filled her ears.
"I don't care if the furnaces are down! I expect everything to be on schedule by morning, or there will be serious consequences!" The witch paused and gave a pleading look to the heavens before turning to Ginarrbrik, "Ready the sleigh, we will travel to Aslan's camp tomorrow to reclaim what is rightfully mine! I will not stand for this thievery."
The witch spotted the incoming guards and saw the two prisoners they held in their arms. Immediately her look of anger turned into a look of fury.
She spread her arms wide, as if welcoming them as guests into her prestigious icy hall, but Amelia knew it was far more sarcastic, "So this is the centaur who destroyed all our blacksmiths?"
Ginarrbrik nodded from beside her, "Yes, your majesty, found him surrounded by their burning flesh."
The witch sneered evilly, "Oh how wonderful. We could return him to his heretics tomorrow. Alive... possibly."
Acmon struggled once again as the witch's threat sunk in. Amelia remained quiet, she would not draw attention to herself; especially not when the witch was suffering from the blow of the Narnian attack.
Acmon cried out, "We are not heretics! We are the soldiers who will see your end! You might as well come to peace with it, your highness, your reign will fall like the leaves before winter!"
The witch did nothing but wave her hand. Acmon's guards dragged him away down a side corridor towards the back of the makeshift palace that was situated in the base camp. Amelia could hear him screaming for minutes on end as they punched and kicked him so that he would be silent. A tear silently leaked from her eye as her thoughts travelled to Edmund. Oh how she prayed he was safe.
"And you," the witch sneered, drawing Amelia's attention, "Amelia. The Silvanus. It's high time you and I had a little History lesson."
Amelia was rather confused by the witch's statement. Was she not to be punished for escaping? While she had to admit, History was not the most interesting subject on the planet, she doubted it was boring enough for punishment of such a crime.
The guards followed the witch to her chambers, dragging Amelia along. Every once in a while she heard a manly scream echo down the corridors. Amelia knew that sound. It was the sound of torture, of pure pain, of desperation. What was worse was that the voice was one she knew. Acmon.
The witch's chambers were exactly what Amelia expected. White walls with ice blue ornaments and icy blue sheets. The guards exited the bedroom, leaving the Witch and Amelia behind. Alone.
Amelia stayed stiff with fear. She never took her gaze off the witch, who was calmly strolling around the room - an expression of wonder on her face. Now that was a look Amelia had never seen before.
Before she knew it, the witch had begun speaking, "Long ago, when Narnia was built upon the basic rules and principles of the land, it was said that all the creators gave Narnia a gift, the Silvanus. A spirit of Nature. One that guards all living things and keeps boundaries. It was said that the Silvanus protected the outer edges of the land and kept all unwanted enemies out."
"The Silvanus, however, was a very curious spirit. Unlike Aslan, the spirit was mortal. After every lifetime, it died, and was then reborn into another world. Each time, the Silvanus has had to find their way to Narnia, to take up the position of protecting the lands once more."
"But 100 years ago, the Silvanus had died, and the spirit had not returned.. until now that is."
Amelia was not sure what she should say, so instead she remained quiet. She was sure there was more to the story, not that being a nature spirit wasn't a kick in the bum already.
"I assumed power once the Silvanus died. It gave me the opportunity to rule Narnia, to create a new land not littered by Aslan and his petty principles. Without the Silvanus, there was no one to protect the Narnians. Aslan left too so they were defenceless. I took my chance..."
"My first General was a man by the name of Lucia Cromwell. He was my most loyal man, never lost a battle. It was, I daresay, the happiest time of my life when he was by my side. He was my first and only best friend."
"But it escalated before we were ready. We had traveled to the outer forests, trying to get rid of those who resisted us. It was there where we realised our true desire for each other. It was there where we conceived our child."
Amelia could not believe her ears. The thought of this cold, bony woman as being a mother haunted her dreams. Amelia was still confused as to why the witch was telling her this, surely this was far too personal for a prisoner to know?
"For the last nine months of my third year as ruler, I carried my child. Many had asked me who the father was, but I never said his name. We would've been shamed. I would've been overthrown, despite my power. My own armies would turn against me. So I kept it a secret, telling them all that it was some nobleman from the North. A child that could strengthen my reign. How wrong I was."
"I was not aware of what Lucia really was. He had a power that I did not know existed. He was a warlock, one of the few to ever exist in Narnia. A child conceived with so much magic in their veins should've exploded power. Such a child should've reigned by my side. By Lucia did not see it that way."
"During those months, my true Queenship had settled in. I had become ruthless, daring and proud. I was no longer a little girl dreaming about this life. I was the dream. Lucia did not see this in such a positive way. He believed I was reckless. He believed that I was too harmful and harsh to take care of a child. We fought about this for many months, but the birth our baby immediately silenced all arguments"
"The child was beautiful, so gentle and timid. I did not know then what I had done, but Lucia knew immediately who the child was. I should've known! I should've have seen it in her green eyes! I should've felt it when I touched her skin! I should've sensed the warmth of summer, I should've smelt the scent of cherry blossoms that followed her. I SHOULD'VE KNOWN!"
The witch slammed her hand down on the table in front of her. It drove a large shock through Amelia and the young girl jumped two feet into the air, but still remained silent; for fear of breaking the story.
"But nevertheless, my motherly instincts had over-powered my better judgement. For I could not sense my worst enemy when she was sitting on my lap, but Lucia could. He had grown weary of my cause, weary enough that he decided to abandon it. But he did not escape the palace alone... he took my child. He stole the Silvanus which I had conceived"
"He escaped into the human world where I could not follow. For years I was grief stricken, wounded by his betrayal. But soon, I became stronger. I became the woman you see before you today, and I built an Empire that struck fear into the heart of the mighty ASLAN!"
The witch's cold gaze set upon Amelia, who was across the room, "For years, the thought of my child had never crossed my mind. For years the memory had left me. For years I was at peace. Until you and your friends came to Narnia. Not only is there a prophecy hanging over my head, but there is you. The child I was never able to love. The daughter that will, eventually, try to kill me. My daughter. My Silvanus."
Oh. My. GOODNESS.
I love this chapter so much! I hope you guys also enjoyed it as much as I did. We can see a bit of the Witch's softer side come out in this chapter, which is why I enjoyed writing it so much. It was just completely different to the angry person I am so used to writing about.
Sooooo, my update was on time, as promised :) And the next update will be on Saturday :D
I have some wonderful news for you all... CAST LIST!
So, I took a look at the polls again, and we have a winner for Acmon, but Amelia on the other hand is still at a tie between four of the actresses, including a new contestant known as Barbara Palvin. Soo, that means that the poll for Amelia will continue until Saturday, so please vote so that we can get a winner! I am making this the last extension, so after this if there is no winner, I will decide between those who are in the tie. Now, without further adoo, the winner to Play Acmon the Cantuar is...
HARRISON FORD!
Yay! I quite like him as Acmon, I feel he suits the character really well :) Please feel free to send in character sketches, fan art or anything that portrays Harrison as Acmon. I would love to include it in my next chapter :)
Here is the poll for Amelia: http://www.poll-maker.com/poll579087xC201426a-24
So, back to the chapter, what do you guys think about the legend of the Silvanus? Did you guys guess that the witch was Amelia's mom? What do you think about her dad being a Warlock? Does it all make sense now, or is there more to this puzzle?
Comment Below!
-Gabbi