A/N: So so sorry for the longest wait for an update in history! My life has settled down for a bit, and I am now on a writing frenzy. Please enjoy the new chapter, and thanks for your patience!

Chapter Four: The Queen Captured

"Do not move, if you value your life."

Lucy stood still, the corridor silent once again, except for the pounding of her heart. The small band was made up of Calormenes, surely, for their hair and clothes showed as much. Was Tashbaan under some sort of attack? "What is going on?" Lucy asked.

One of the men lowered his bow and stepped forward. "Who are you? Why are you wandering the castle?"

The cold tone of his voice made Lucy narrow her eyes. She stood as tall as she was able and said in an indignant voice, "I am Queen Lucy of Narnia, and a guest of this house. Now you will declare yourself to me!"

The man flicked his hand at the others, who lowered their arrows a bit. "Queen Lucy, you say?" he asked, his eyes searching her. "What are you doing here? The visitors were shown their leave an hour ago."

"What are you talking about?" Lucy was losing her fear, and was filling up instead with confusion at his words, and irritation at his tone. "I am here by invitation, and have work to do. And you would do well to tell your men to stand down"—and here she glanced over at the others—"before my guard finds you aiming your weapons at me." At this, the men huddled together, having a whispered conversation. Lucy was becoming even more agitated. "Look here," she snapped, "move aside and let me pass. I have an important meeting to attend, and your masters will not be pleased to hear how you have treated their guests."

The leader looked back at her and gave a strange smile. "Our masters are . . . indisposed at the moment."

One of the other men spoke up, "We should take her with us, and lock her up. She could be a spy."

"No!" said another. "If she is from Narnia, then she is not our enemy. We do not want to anger the barbarians. Send her back to her ship!"

This caused the group to begin muttering at once, and Lucy could hear them arguing to each other: "But the Queen Susan of Narnia came to marry Rabadash—But is this the Queen Lucy who fought him in Archenland?—She could be lying—She's a spy—We must take her with us!"

"Enough," growled the leader. "Take her and bind her hands. But do not hurt her. We'll take her to the Chief."

"What are you doing?" Lucy cried, as two of the men seized her. They easily pulled her hands together as one quickly tied a length of cord around them. "Take your hands off of me! Let go!" She turned to the leader, her eyes wide. "What is happening? Why are you doing this?"

"A thousand pardons, Your Majesty, but I will be asking the questions here." He signaled the others, and they began down the hall at a brisk pace. Two men stood on either side of Lucy, holding her by the arms. "What are you doing? Where are you taking me? I demand an answer!" she shouted. But none were offered.

She was led down hallway after hallway, up and down flights of stairs. Lucy struggled against the two men who held her arms, but they moved her so swiftly that it did little good. She looked around frantically for a sign of Hyreus, for her guard—for anyone!—but no one appeared. Finally, they went down a long staircase, into what Lucy was sure was the very bowels of the castle.

It was, in fact, the prisoner's keep. Two guards stood there, lazily leaning against the wall and talking to one another. "Another one?" one of them said as the party approached. "Turdan, can you ever remember having such fine prisoners before?"

"Never," Turdan said, and led them to one of the cages. They unbound her hands before pushing her inside one, and before she could try to get away, the door locked behind her. "Let me out, at once!" she cried, but the men just ignored her. She could hear their footsteps as they returned to the entrance of the keep. Lucy held tightly to the bars of the cell, calling for them. Finally, she banged her fist against the bars, and leaned her head against them.

"Queen Lucy?" A voice came from the cell beside hers. Lucy jumped up at the sound. Prince Cor! The light was dim, but there was a small hole in the wall that connected their cages. She pressed her face against it and saw the young prince doing the same on the other side.

"Yes, I'm here," she said to him, relieved to see a familiar face. "Are you all right?"

"I suppose," he whispered back. "Are the other Narnians with you? Did you see any of the Archenlanders?"

"No," she replied. "I was alone when they took me. Do you know what has happened?"

The prince shook his head. "Soldiers arrived at the apartment early this morning, and ordered us to leave immediately. They were letting us go back to our ship on the orders we were to return to Archenland. The guard tried to put up a fight, but there were too many of them. But as we were leaving, one of the Tarkaans recognized me—" and here he swallowed. "I think it was the one who had bought me, before I escaped. They seized me and brought me down here. I don't know what happened to the others in the confusion."

Lucy sat back against the wall, taking in the news. The soldiers who had brought her here had been right: the monarchs visiting Tashbaan had all been escorted to their ships and were long gone. But Lucy was far too confused to panic. What had caused the evacuation? And why was she being held a prisoner?

An hour slipped by as Lucy turned things over in her mind. She thought of the others, and wondered if they had left her there, if they were gone already. Would they make it back safely to Narnia? If they did, surely there would be a rescue coming immediately. If they were still in Tashbaan, she knew that they would be searching for her. Unless, of course, they were imprisoned somewhere as well.

The sound of raised voices snapped Lucy out of her thoughts. She ran quickly to peer out through the bars, hoping to catch sight of someone, anyone. The voices continued, but then came the sound of footsteps approaching her cell. "We caught a spy," she heard one of the voices say.

"I am no spy!" Lucy exclaimed. "I demand to know what is going on, and to be released at once!"

Finally, the men appeared in view, and Lucy recognized one at once: it was Rushda Tarkaan, whom Lucy had met on her first night in Tashbaan. "Queen Lucy!" he said in a grave tone. He turned to the other men. "This is your spy?"

"She was wandering the hallways, Sir," one answered. "Our orders were to bring any spies back here, so we took her into custody."

"Fools!" Rushda Tarkaan shouted. "Do you not know who this is? She is the sister of the High King of Narnia! Now we will have a barbarian invasion on our hands." He shook his head and turned back to the queen. "I am sorry for their mistake, My Lady. Please forgive them their ignorance."

Lucy glared at the Tarkaan with contempt. "I wish to see the Tisroc at once. He needs to see how his guests are so treated."

"That, my dear Queen, is impossible." Rushda Tarkaan smiled. "The Tisroc is no longer in power here. We have relieved him of his duties as ruler of Calormen."

Lucy gasped. She remembered what Losha had told her of the displeasure the Tarkaans had for Calormen's state of affairs, but this? This she would never have believed. "And the Prince Rabadash? Where is he?" The news had Lucy's head spinning.

"In the stocks, where he belongs." The Tarkaan's voice was cold. "Now, I will have an escort take you directly to your ship. But then you must leave, and go straight back to Narnia."

One of the other men interrupted, "Sir, wouldn't it be best to keep her here, and use her to trade with the High King? Surely he would do anything for the queen's safe return. We can use her to gain advantage over our enemies."

Lucy swallowed, fighting the fear that was rising in her mind. "Narnia is not the enemy of Calormen. And I would rather die than allow you to use me as a bargaining tool against my brother." Rusda Tarkaan narrowed his eyes, but Lucy continued, "And what of Prince Cor? You have no right to keep him here, either. The king of Archenland will be furious when he discovers you have taken his son!"

The man snorted. "This boy is a runaway slave. He is being held until he can be brought to justice."

Lucy gasped. "How dare you! He is the Crown Prince—"

"He is a slave who has run from his master. Therefore, his master will decide his fate. Now allow us to take you to your ship, and you will be free to go."

"No!" Lucy exclaimed. "I will not leave without him."

Rushda Tarkaan regarded her a moment, and then smiled. "You may believe you are very brave, young queen, but you are far more foolish." Lucy began to give an angry retort, but the Tarkaan had already turned away from her and was giving more orders. "Keep her here, but see that she is well-looked after. And find the other Narnians. We do not want an unnecessary battle now that things are falling into place, however futile it would be for them." Without another glance, he left.

Lucy shouted after them, clutching the bars, but no one answered. When her throat began to finally throb, she slid down the wall, sitting in a very un-queenlike heap. Lucy heaved a sigh. She thought of Hyreus, wondering again where he was. Lucy prayed to Aslan that he and the other Narnians had gotten safely away.

She thought about what would happen if they returned to Narnia without her. No, she said to herself, Hyreus would never leave me behind. But what if he had no choice? How could he and six Narnian soldiers stand up to the Calormene army?

Then a new fear came to mind: what would the High King do when he heard of her imprisonment? And Edmund? She knew that her brothers would be beside themselves, and rush to her aid at once. But how could Narnia possibly hope to storm Tashbaan? She thought of the soldiers, the innocent Narnians, who would most likely risk their lives to save her. Then she thought of Susan. How terrible it would be for her! She could just see her sister, distraught over their safety, worrying the way she always did when Narnia faced a great danger. And Susan had warned her, told her not to go alone. Lucy had been convinced she could handle the mission on her own. And here she was, in need of rescuing.

Lucy hugged herself tightly. She willed herself not to cry. She felt suddenly, totally, alone.

But she was not alone at all. "Queen Lucy?" Cor's voice was small and shaking. Lucy wiped her eyes and turned towards the sound. "I'm here," she called back.

"They aren't going to let us go, are they?"

"Try not to worry," she answered. "I won't leave you. I promise." I must be strong for Cor, she thought to herself. And with that in her mind, Lucy began to form a plan.