When the group reached the island, Mila expressed her concerns. She pointed to a rope that led down into a cave. "We're not the first to arrive."
"The lords?" Edmund guessed, also seeing the rope.
"Could be," Caspian said as he peeked into the cave. He grabbed a rock and dropped it down. "What do you think could be down there?"
Edmund shrugged. "Let's find out."
He was the first to climb down. Caspian was next, followed by Lucy, then Mila. The Merciful Queen felt uneasy and said, "I don't like this place. Something about it."
Mila was about to suggest they split up, but realised it would be better if they stayed together. Not one of them had any idea what evil this place was capable of.
Edmund walked closer to a golden statue of a man. "What's that?" Caspian asked as the others moved closer to Edmund.
He shook his head. "I don't know. Looks like some sort of gold statue."
Edmund looked around and ripped a branch off of the tree as he attempted to move the statue, Suddenly, the branch seemed heavy and as soon as he lifted it from the water, they saw that it had turned to gold.
"He must have fallen in," Caspian noted, staring at the statue.
"Poor man," Lucy said quietly.
Mila glanced up at their exit. "We should go. This place is tempting us."
Edmund glanced to his sister and said, "You mean poor lord."
"The crest of Restimar," Caspian replied, noticing the shield.
"And his sword," Edmund said as he pointed to the sword.
"We need it," Caspian told them.
Edmund drew his sword and Caspian held onto his arm, bracing the two of them. Mila saw the green mist swirling beneath them and hoped they'd be all right and wouldn't fall to temptation.
"Be careful," Lucy warned. Edmund managed to get the sword without falling in. "Your sword hasn't turned to gold."
"Both swords are magical," Caspian explained. "Here."
Lucy was still focused on the lord. "He mustn't have known what hit him."
"Maybe. Or maybe he was onto something," Edmund stated, placing down his sword.
Caspian was still holding the lord's sword. "What are you talking about?"
Edmund silently picked up a shell. He bent down and dipped the tip of it into the water and dropped it as it turned to solid gold. The greed in his eyes concerned Mila.
"What are you staring at?" Lucy wondered, noticing the same look Mila was seeing.
Edmund looked up at them, the hunger and greed still evident in his eyes. "Whoever has access to this pool, could be the most powerful person in the world." Lucy, Caspian and Mila exchanged a worried look. "Lucy, Mila, we'd be so rich. No one could tell us what to do, or who to live with."
Lucy stepped back, pulling Mila with her.
"You can't take anything out of Narnia, Edmund," Caspian said.
"Says who?" Edmund questioned, still gazing at the shell.
Caspian's expression darkened. "I do."
Lucy stepped back further, once again, pulling Mila with her. Mila pulled away, ready to intervene if she needed to, but she had a feeling the two kings needed to sort out whatever it was.
Edmund picked up his sword and slowly walked towards Caspian with a dark look in his eyes. "I'm not your subject."
"You've been waiting for this, haven't you? To challenge me. You doubt my leadership," Caspian challenged in a dangerously low tone.
"You doubt yourself," Edmund retorted.
"You are a child!" Caspian yelled, glaring down at the younger king.
"And you're a spineless sap!"
They glared at each other, breathing heavily as jealousy shone in both their expressions.
Lucy ran forward and grabbed her brother's arm. "Edmund!"
He pushed her off, still focused on Caspian. "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 smirked. "I deserve a kingdom of my own. I deserve to rule!"
"If you think you're so brave, prove it," Caspian demanded, pushing Edmund back.
Edmund lifted his sword and it immediately clashed with Caspan's. Lucy and Mila rushed to step in between them, pushing them back.
"No! Stop it! Both of you!" Lucy cried. "Look at yourselves. Can't you see what's happening? This place has tempted you. It's bewitching you. This is exactly what Coriakin was talking about."
"Ed, have you forgotten about the White Witch? She tempted you with a kingdom of your own," Mila reminded the boy king. "Don't fall into that lie again."
Edmund looked down in shame at the golden shell still in his hand. He exchanged a look with Caspian before throwing the shell into the water.
As Lucy and Caspian walked off, he grabbed Mila's arm and said, "Thank you, Mila. I had forgotten."
Mila nodded and said, "You're welcome. Sometimes all we need is a little reminder. Come."
They followed after Lucy and Caspian.
---
Eustace trudged alone through the rocky hill, speaking to himself. "Oh, yes, follow the imaginary Blue Star to the island of Ramandoodoo. Lay the seven steak knives at the table of a talking lion." He kicked the stones on the ground. "Ninnies!"
Something glistening in the sunlight caught Eustace's attention and he walked closer. "What is that?" A rock gave way and he tumbled down a cliff. A small one, but still a cliff. After dusting himself off, he saw that he was surrounded by piles of treasure.
It took him a moment to compose himself. "I must be dead." He found a goblet and began piling treasure into it; as much as he could fit.
A shiny bracelet caught his eye. There was a reptile of sorts on it. Whether it be a dragon or a lizard, he wasn't sure. He placed down his goblet and walked towards to the bracelet.
The bracelet was on a skeleton. "Ah!"
Eustace composed himself. "You're definitely dead."
He slid the bracelet off the skeleton's arm and placed it on his own. "Won't be needing that then, will you?"
He began collecting more treasure. Since the goblet was full, he started placing items in his pockets. He paused, hearing whispers around him. No one was there, so he focused his attention back to the treasure.
A wide smile formed on his face. "Finally... a favourable turn of events."
---
Lucy and Mila were walking slightly ahead of the boys. When they reached the boats, Caspian asked, "What food did you find?"
Rhince crouched near several woven baskets that were not even half full. "It's volcanic, Your Majesty. Not much grows."
Mila frowned, realising they were missing someone. "Where's Eustace?"
Reepicheep's voice took on a sarcastic tone. "I believe he's out not helping us load the boats."
"Eustace!" Lucy cried.
"Eustace!" Mila called. There was no sign of the boy. Mila worried, as the boy didn't know Narnia and could easily have gotten lost.
Mila frowned. "Something is not right. We must find Eustace."
Edmund glanced at the girls. "I'll go find him."
Caspian nodded. "I'll come with you."
Mila turned to the kings. "Be careful."
Edmund gave her a nod. "We will."
Mila turned to the crew. "Some of you should stay in case Eustace returns. Lucy and I will head back to the ship to make sure Gael is all right. She must be frightened."
Reepicheep bowed. "Understood, Your Majesty."
---
Caspian and Edmund walked along a path that Eustace followed and saw footprints. "Eustace!" Caspian called.
"Eustace!" Edmund yelled. They stopped, seeing a cliff that someone had recently fallen down.
"Treasure," Edmund noted.
"Trouble," Caspian corrected in a warning tone.
They carefully made their way down and Edmund saw a burnt red shoe; Eustace's. He picked it up and whispered in a pained voice, "Eustace. Oh, no."
Caspian knelt beside Edmund and whispered, "I'm sorry."
Edmund looked down guiltily. "He was just a boy. I never should have left him. What could have happened to him?"
Caspian glanced over his shoulder. "In this place, anything." He stood, seeing a skeleton behind him. "And he wasn't the first. It's Lord Octesian. We should find his..." Edmund caused him to stop as he unsheathed what Caspian was looking for, "...sword."
They had three out of seven swords.
---
Back on the ship, Lucy, Gael and Mila were standing with Drinian close to the wheel. They heard a loud roar in the distance and instantly, everyone stepped back in fear.
"What was that?" Lucy wondered, glancing to Drinian.
"Is it a volcano?" Gael asked in an innocently fearful tone.
Drinian glanced at the direction the sound was coming from. "Oh, no. That's no volcano. All hands on deck there! Archers, arm yourselves!"
The crew busied themselves with getting ready and arming themselves. A dragon appeared, roaring and breathing fire.
"Take your positions and wait for my command," Drinian ordered.
Lucy and Mila held onto Gael as the men took aim. Gael buried her head into Mila's waist. The dragon landed on the mast, causing it to shake.
"What's it doing?!" Lucy cried.
"Fire!" Drinian hollered. The men fired and the dragon stumbled. "He'll break the mast!"
Reepicheep unsheathed his sword. "Right!" He placed it in his mouth, climbed up the mast, and swung on a rope. As the dragon fell from being stabbed, Mila grabbed Gael and took her inside the cabin for safety.
She huddled into the Merciful Queen for safety. Moments later, there was a knock on the cabin door and Lucy appeared. "The dragon, Eustace, is back on land. Would you two like to come?"
Gael looked to Mila and she nodded. "Lead the way."
They reached land and they royals, Gael, Rhince, Drinian, Reepicheep and Tavros were staring at Eustace trying to pull off the bracelet.
"He must have been tempted by the treasure," Edmund guessed.
"Anyone knows that a dragon's treasure is enchanted..." Caspian began, stopping himself. "Well, anyone from here."
Eustace huffed at Caspian and Lucy smirked. Mila walked towards Eustace and motioned for him to give her his arm. He glared at her and refused.
Mila sighed. "I'm only trying to help."
He sighed and relented. She grabbed the bracelet on either side and slowly pulled it down. He started fidgeting and looked pained. "Eustace, you must stop fidgeting. Staying still will make this so much easier." The bracelet came off and she threw it to the side. "There you are. Is that better?"
Eustace nodded and Lucy asked, "Is there any way to change him back?"
Caspian glanced to the Narnians and they shook their heads. "Not that I know of."
The dragon glanced to his cousins with worry swimming in his eyes. "Aunt Alberta will not be pleased," Edmund stated.
Reepicheep moved closer to Eustace. "Sorry about the hand, old boy. I can be a little overzealous at times."
"The boats are ready, sire," Tavros told Caspian.
Mila glanced between Eustace and Caspian. "We can't leave him."
Drinian turned to her. "We can't take him on board, Your Majesty."
Mila shook her head. "Not aboard the ship. Eustace is a guest in this world and we can leave no one behind. Man or dragon."
Caspian nodded. "Drinian, you and the others take one boat back. The rest of us will stay here til morning... and work out what to do." He handed Drinian the sword he was holding.
Rhince spoke to Caspian. "But you've no provisions, and no means of staying warm, Your Majesty."
Moments later, Eustace breathed onto a pile of logs, setting them on fire. Reepicheep chuckled softly. "You were saying?"
Mila smiled at Eustace. "Thank you. Reep is right. You are far from useless. Firewood is a great help. You have started on the path of making yourself a worthy ally of Narnia."
She heard Reepicheep say to Caspian, "The Merciful Queen is right." He looked to Mila. "Get some rest, Your Majesty. We've a long day ahead of us."