《凱斯賓王子》第5章:凱斯賓深山探險
AFTER this, Caspian and his Tutor had many more secret conversations on the top of the Great Tower, and at each conversation Caspian learned more about Old Narnia, so that thinking and dreaming about the old days, and longing that they might come back, filled nearly all his spare hours. But of course he had not many hours to spare, for now his education was beginning in earnest. He learned sword-fighting and riding, swimming and diving, how to shoot with the bow and play on the recorder and the theorbo, how to hunt the stag and cut him up when he was dead, besides Cosmography, Rhetoric, Heraldry, Versification, and of course History, with a little Law, Physic, Alchemy, and Astronomy. Of Magic he learned only the theory, for Doctor Cornelius said the practical part was not proper study for princes. "And I myself," he added, "am only a very imperfect magician and can do only the smallest experiments." Of Navigation ("Which is a noble and heroical art," said the Doctor) he was taught nothing, because King Miraz disapproved of ships and the sea.
He also learned a great deal by using his own eyes and ears. As a little boy he had often wondered why he disliked his aunt, Queen Prunaprismia; he now saw that it was because she disliked him. He also began to see that Narnia was an unhappy country. The taxes were high and the laws were stern and Miraz was a cruel man.
After some years there came a time when the Queen seemed to be ill and there was a great deal of bustle and pother about her in the castle and doctors came and the courtiers whispered. This was in early summertime. And one night, while all this fuss was going on, Caspian was unexpectedly wakened by Doctor Cornelius after he had been only a few hours in bed.
"Are we going to do a little Astronomy, Doctor?" said Caspian.
"Hush!" said the Doctor. "Trust me and do exactly as I tell you. Put on all your clothes; you have a long journey before you."
Caspian was very surprised, but he had learned to have confidence in his Tutor and he began doing what he was told at once. When he was dressed the Doctor said, "I have a wallet for you. We must go into the next room and fill it with victuals from your Highness's supper table."
"My gentlemen-in-waiting will be there," said Caspian.
"They are fast asleep and will not wake," said the Doctor. "I am a very minor magician but I can at least contrive a charmed sleep."
They went into the antechamber and there, sure enough, the two gentlemen-in-waiting were, sprawling on chairs and snoring hard. Doctor Cornelius quickly cut up the remains of a cold chicken and some slices of venison and put them, with bread and an apple or so and a little flask of good wine, into the wallet which he then gave to Caspian. It fitted on by a strap over Caspian's shoulder, like a satchel you would use for taking books to school.
"Have you your sword?" asked the Doctor.
"Yes," said Caspian.
"Then put this mantle over all to hide the sword and the wallet. That's right. And now we must go to the Great Tower and talk."
When they had reached the top of the Tower (it was a cloudy night, not at all like the night when they had seen the conjunction of Tarva and Alambil) Doctor Cornelius said,
"Dear Prince, you must leave this castle at once and go to seek your fortune in the wide world. Your life is in danger here."
"Why?" asked Caspian.
"Because you are the true King of Narnia: Caspian the Tenth, the true son and heir of Caspian the Ninth. Long life to your Majesty' - and suddenly, to Caspian's great surprise, the little man dropped down on one knee and kissed his hand.
"What does it all mean? I don't understand," said Caspian.
"I wonder you have never asked me before," said the Doctor, "why, being the son of King Caspian, you are not King Caspian yourself. Everyone except your Majesty knows that Miraz is a usurper. When he first began to rule he did not even pretend to be the King: he called himself Lord Protector. But then your royal mother died, the good Queen and the only Telmarine who was ever kind to me. And then, one by one, all the great lords, who had known your father, died or disappeared. Not by accident, either. Miraz weeded them out. Belisar and Uvilas were shot with arrows on a hunting party: by chance, it was pretended. All the great house of the Passarids he sent to fight giants on the northern frontier till one by one they fell. Arlian and Erimon and a dozen more he executed for treason on a false charge. The two brothers of Beaversdam he shut up as madmen. And finally he persuaded the seven noble lords, who alone among all the Telmarines did not fear the sea, to sail away and look for new lands beyond the Eastern Ocean, and, as he intended, they never came back. And when there was no one left who could speak a word for you, then his flatterers (as he had instructed them) begged him to become King. And of course he did."
"Do you mean he now wants to kill me too?" said Caspian.
"That is almost certain," said Doctor Cornelius.
"But why now?" said Caspian. "I mean, why didn't he do it long ago if he wanted to? And what harm have I done him?"
"He has changed his mind about you because of something that happened only two hours ago. The Queen has had a son."
"I don't see what that's got to do with it," said Caspian.
"Don't see!" exclaimed the Doctor. "Have all my lessons in History and Politics taught you no more than that? Listen. As long as he had no children of his own, he was willing enough that you should be King after he died. He may not have cared much about you, but he would rather you should have the throne than a stranger. Now that he has a son of his own he will want his own son to be the next King. You are in the way. He'll clear you out of the way."
"Is he really as bad as that?" said Caspian. "Would he really murder me?"
"He murdered your Father," said Doctor Cornelius.
Caspian felt very queer and said nothing.
"I can tell you the whole story," said the Doctor. "But not now. There is no time. You must fly at once."
"You'll come with me?" said Caspian.
"I dare not," said the Doctor. "It would make your danger greater. Two are more easily tracked than one. Dear Prince, dear King Caspian, you must be very brave. You must go alone and at once. Try to get across the southern border to the court of King Nain of Archenland. He will be good to you."
"Shall I never see you again?" said Caspian in a quavering voice.
"I hope so, dear King," said the Doctor. "What friend have I in the wide world except your Majesty? And I have a little magic. But in the meantime, speed is everything. Here are two gifts before you go. This is a little purse of gold alas, all the treasure in this castle should be your own by rights. And here is something far better."
He put in Caspian's hands something which he could hardly see but which he knew by the feel to be a horn.
"That," said Doctor Cornelius, "is the greatest and most sacred treasure of Narnia. Many terrors I endured, many spells did I utter, to find it, when I was still young. It is the magic horn of Queen Susan herself which she left behind her when she vanished from Narnia at the end of the Golden Age. It is said that whoever blows it shall have strange help - no one can say how strange. It may have the power to call Queen Lucy and King Edmund and Queen Susan and High King Peter back from the past, and they will set all to rights. It may be that it will call up Asian himself. Take it, King Caspian: but do not use it except at your greatest need. And now, haste, haste, haste. The little door at the very bottom of the Tower, the door into the garden, is unlocked. There we must part."
"Can I get my horse Destrier?" said Caspian.
"He is already saddled and waiting for you just at the corner of the orchard."
During the long climb down the winding staircase Cornelius whispered many more words of direction and advice. Caspian's heart was sinking, but he tried to take it all in. Then came the fresh air in the garden, a fervent handclasp with the Doctor, a run across the lawn, a welcoming whinny from Destrier, and so King Caspian the Tenth left the castle of his fathers. Looking back, he saw fireworks going up to celebrate the birth of the new prince.
All night he rode southward, choosing by-ways and bridle paths through woods as long as he was in country that he knew; but afterwards he kept to the high road. Destrier was as excited as his master at this unusual journey, and Caspian, though tears had come into his eyes at saying good-bye to Doctor Cornelius, felt brave and, in a way, happy, to think that he was King Caspian riding to seek adventures, with his sword on his left hip and Queen Susan's magic horn on his right. But when day came, with a sprinkle of rain, and he looked about him and saw on every side unknown woods, wild heaths, and blue mountains, he thought how large and strange the world was and felt frightened and small.
As soon as it was full daylight he left the road and found an open grassy place amid a wood where he could rest. He took off Destrier's bridle and let him graze, ate some cold chicken and drank a little wine, and presently fell asleep. It was late afternoon when he awoke. He ate a morsel and continued his journey, still southward, by many unfrequented lanes. He was now in a land of hills, going up and down, but always more up than down. From every ridge he could see the mountains growing bigger and blacker ahead. As the evening closed in, he was riding their lower slopes. The wind rose. Soon rain fell in torrents.
Destrier became uneasy; there was thunder in the air. And now they entered a dark and seemingly endless pine forest, and all the stories Caspian had ever heard of trees being unfriendly to Man crowded into his mind. He remembered that he was, after all, a Telmarine, one of the race who cut down trees wherever they could and were at war with all wild things; and though he himself might be unlike other Telmarines, the trees could not be expected to know this.
Nor did they. The wind became a tempest, the woods roared and creaked all round them. There came a crash. A tree fell right across the road just behind him. "Quiet, Destrier, quiet!" said Caspian, patting his horse's neck; but he was trembling himself and knew that he had escaped death by an inch. Lightning flashed and a great crack of thunder seemed to break the sky in two just overhead.
Destrier bolted in good earnest. Caspian was a good rider, but he had not the strength to hold him back. He kept his seat, but he knew that his life hung by a thread during the wild career that followed. Tree after tree rose up before them in the dusk and was only just avoided. Then, almost too suddenly to hurt (and yet it did hurt him too) something struck Caspian on the forehead and he knew no more.
When he came to himself he was lying in a firelit place with bruised limbs and a bad headache. Low voices were speaking close at hand.
"And now," said one, "before it wakes up we must decide what to do with it."
"Kill it," said another. "We can't let it live. It would betray us."
"We ought to have killed it at once, or else let it alone," said a third voice. "We can't kill it now. Not after we've taken it in and bandaged its head and all. It would be murdering a guest."
"Gentlemen," said Caspian in a feeble voice, "whatever you do to me, I hope you will be kind to my poor horse."
"Your horse had taken flight long before we found you," said the first voice - a curiously husky, earthy voice, as Caspian now noticed.
"Now don't let it talk you round with its pretty words," said the second voice. "I still say-"
"Horns and halibuts!" exclaimed the third voice. "Of course we're not going to murder it. For shame, Nikabrik. What do you say, Trufflehunter? What shall we do with it?"
"I shall give it a drink," said the first voice, presumably Trufflehunter's. A dark shape approached the bed. Caspian felt an arm slipped gently under his shoulders - if it was exactly an arm. The shape somehow seemed wrong. The face that bent towards him seemed wrong too. He got the impression that it was very hairy and very long nosed, and there were odd white patches on each side of it. "It's a mask of some sort," thought Caspian. "Or perhaps I'm in a fever and imagining it all." A cupful of something sweet and hot was set to his lips and he drank. At that moment one of the others poked the fire. A blaze sprang up and Caspian almost screamed with the shock as the sudden light revealed the face that was looking into his own. It was not a man's face but a badger's, though larger and friendlier and more intelligent than the face of any badger he had seen before. And it had certainly been talking. He saw, too, that he was on a bed of heather, in a cave. By the fire sat two little bearded men, so much wilder and shorter and hairier and thicker than Doctor Cornelius that he knew them at once for real Dwarfs, ancient Dwarfs with not a drop of human blood in their veins. And Caspian knew that he had found the Old Narnians at last. Then his head began to swim again.
In the next few days he learned to know them by names. The Badger was called Trufflehunter; he was the oldest and kindest of the three. The Dwarf who had wanted to kill Caspian was a sour Black Dwarf (that is, his hair and beard were black, and thick and hard like horsehair). His name was Nikabrik. The other Dwarf was a Red Dwarf with hair rather like a Fox's and he was called Trumpkin.
"And now," said Nikabrik on the first evening when Caspian was well enough to sit up and talk, "we still have to decide what to do with this Human. You two think you've done it a great kindess by not letting me kill it. But I suppose the upshot is that we have to keep it a prisoner for life. I'm certainly not going to let it go alive - to go back to its own kind and betray us all."
"Bulbs and bolsters! Nikabrik," said Trumpkin. "Why need you talk so unhandsomely? It isn't the creature's fault that it bashed its head against a tree outside our hole. And I don't think it looks like a traitor."
"I say," said Caspian, "you haven't yet found out whether I want to go back. I don't. I want to stay with you - if you'll let me. I've been looking for people like you all my life."
"That's a likely story," growled Nikabrik. "You're a Telmarine and a Human, aren't you? Of course you want to go back to your own kind."
"Well, even if I did, I couldn't," said Caspian. "I was flying for my life when I had my accident. The King wants to kill me. If you'd killed me, you'd have done the very thing to please him."
"Well now," said Trufflehunter, "you don't say so!"
"Eh?" said Trumpkin. "What's that? What have you been doing, Human, to fall foul of Miraz at your age?"
"He's my uncle," began Caspian, when Nikabrik jumped up with his hand on his dagger.
"There you are!" he cried. "Not only a Telmarine but close kin and heir to our greatest enemy. Are you still mad enough to let this creature live?" He would have stabbed Caspian then and there, if the Badger and Trumpkin had not got in the way and forced him back to his seat and held him down.
"Now, once and for all, Nikabrik," said Trumpkin. "Will you contain yourself, or must Trufflehunter and I sit on your head?"
Nikabrik sulkily promised to behave, and the other two asked Caspian to tell his whole story. When he had done so there was a moment's silence.
"This is the queerest thing I ever heard," said Trumpkin.
"I don't like it," said Nikabrik. "I didn't know there were stories about us still told among the Humans. The less they know about us the better. That old nurse, now. She'd better have held her tongue. And it's all mixed up with that Tutor: a renegade Dwarf. I hate 'em. I hate 'em worse than the Humans. You mark my words - no good will come of it.
"Don't you go talking about things you don't understand, Nikabrik," said Trufflehunter. "You Dwarfs are as forgetful and changeable as the Humans themselves. I'm a beast, I am, and a Badger what's more. We don't change. We hold on. I say great good will come of it. This is the true King of Narnia we've got here: a true King, coming back to true Narnia. And we beasts remember, even if Dwarfs forget, that Narnia was never right except when a son of Adam was King."
"Whistles and whirligigs! Trufflehunter," said Trumpkin. "You don't mean you want to give the country to Humans?"
"I said nothing about that," answered the Badger. "It's not Men's country (who should know that better than me?) but it's a country for a man to be King of. We badgers have long enough memories to know that. Why, bless us all, wasn't the High King Peter a Man?"
"Do you believe all those old stories?" asked Trumpkin.
"I tell you, we don't change, we beasts," said Trufflehunter. "We don't forget. I believe in the High King Peter and the rest that reigned at Cair Paravel, as firmly as I believe in Aslan himself."
"As firmly as that, I dare say," said Trumpkin. "But who believes in Aslan nowadays?"
"I do," said Caspian. "And if I hadn't believed in him before, I would now. Back there among the Humans the people who laughed at Aslan would have laughed at stories about Talking Beasts and Dwarfs. Sometimes I did wonder if there really was such a person as Aslan: but then sometimes I wondered if there were really people like you. Yet there you are."
"That's right," said Trufflehunter. "You're right, King Caspian. And as long as you will be true to Old Narnia you shall be my King, whatever they say. Long life to your Majesty."
"You make me sick, Badger," growled Nikabrik. "The High King Peter and the rest may have been Men, but they were a different sort of Men. This is one of the cursed Telmarines. He has hunted beasts for sport. Haven't you, now?" he added, rounding suddenly on Caspian.
"Well, to tell you the truth, I have," said Caspian. "But they weren't Talking Beasts."
"It's all the same thing," said Nikabrik.
"No, no, no," said Trufflehunter. "You know it isn't. You know very well that the beasts in Narnia nowadays are different and are no more than the poor dumb, witless creatures you'd find in Calormen or Telmar. They're smaller too. They're far more different from us than the half-Dwarfs are from you."
There was a great deal more talk, but it all ended with the agreement that Caspian should stay and even the promise that, as soon as he was able to go out, he should be taken to see what Trumpkin called "the Others"; for apparently in these wild parts all sorts of creatures from the Old Days of Narnia still lived on in hiding.
"而我自己，"他補充道，"也只是一個很不成熟的占星家，只能做最簡單的試驗。"他沒有上航海課，(“這是一門高尚而又富有英雄色彩的學問。"博士說。)這是因爲國王彌若茲反對提到船舶和大海。,
他憑着自己的聰慧敏銳與細心的觀察，還學會了不少其他知識。當他還是個孩子的時候，他就不喜歡自己的嬸嬸——普魯娜普瑞絲彌爾王后，現在他明白了，那是因爲她不喜歡他。同時他漸漸發現，納尼亞是一個不幸福的國家，
稅收過重，法律嚴酷，而彌若茲更是一個極其殘忍的君王。
歲月如梭，一晃幾年過去了。有一段時間裏，王后好像是害了什麼病，整個城堡都爲她忙碌和不安，醫生們往返如梭，全國上下都在議論紛紛。這時已是初夏，一天夜裏，凱斯賓躺下不過幾個鐘頭，便意外地被克奈爾斯博士搖醒了。
"我們要講一點兒天文學嗎，博士？"凱斯賓問。
"噓！”博士低聲說，"別說話，你要相信我，按照我的盼咐去做。穿上衣服，你就要進行一次長途跋涉了。"
凱斯賓感到十分詫異，可現在他已完全信任自己的老師，便立刻照他的吩咐做了。穿好衣服之後，博士遞給他一件什麼東西"我這兒給你準備了一個旅行袋，我們馬上到隔壁房間，從餐桌上取些吃的，把袋子裝滿。"
"那兒有我的僕人，他們總是寸步不離的。"
"他們都睡着了，放心好了，"博士說，"我雖是個微不足道的魔法師，但要使人昏睡還是辦得到的。"
他們一齊來到隔壁。果然，兩個僕人仰靠在椅子上，鼻平聲如雷。克奈爾斯博士迅速地收拾起剩下的涼雞和幾片鹿肉，連同麪包、一隻蘋果等其他的食物，以及一小瓶好酒一齊放進那旅行袋裏，讓王子背在身上。
"寶劍帶上了嗎？"博士問。"帶着呢。"
"那就快披上這件斗篷，把寶劍和旅行袋都遮住。嗯，好。咱們現在到塔頂上去，我有幾句話對你講。"
這時已是深夜，塔頂上漆黑一片，寒氣襲人，彷彿籠罩在不祥的恐怖之中，點兒也不像他們一起來看塔瓦星和阿拉姆畢爾星相會那天晚上的樣子。克奈爾斯博士說,
"親愛的王子，馬上離開這個城堡，到廣大的世界裏去尋求你的幸福吧。在這裏你隨時都會有生命危險。"
"爲什麼？”凱斯賓驚愕地問。
"因爲你是納尼亞真正的國王:凱斯賓十世——凱斯賓九世的親生兒子和繼承人。陛下萬歲——"說着，這小人兒突然跪下一條腿來，吻了一下他的手，這使凱斯賓大吃一驚口.
"博士，你怎麼啦？我都糊塗了。"
"你好像從來沒有想過，"博士說，"爲什麼作爲凱斯賓國王的兒子、法定的繼承人，你卻不是納尼亞的國王。除了你以外，人人都知道彌若茲是個篡位奪權的小人。他開始統治的時候，並沒有以國王的身分出現，他稱自己是君王的保護人。後來，你的母后去世了。她是一位賢慧的王后，也是惟——位待我仁慈的臺爾馬人。接着，所有那些剛正的大臣，那些對你父親忠心耿耿的人，也一個個相繼死去，或者失蹤了，而且都死得很奇怪，沒有一個是正常死亡。無疑是心狠手辣的彌若茲把他們都幹掉了。比如，伯力沙和猶威拉思在一場捋獵中被箭射死了，說是失手誤傷：他還把所有伯薩瑞德的望族都派到北邊戰場上，與巨人作戰，直到他們一個個戰死疆場，阿康和艾瑞蒙還有其他的十幾個人，被他以莫須有的叛國罪處決了，海狸大壩的兩兄弟也被他作爲瘋子關了起來。最後，他說服了臺爾馬人中惟獨不怕大海的七位爵爺，航行到東海彼岸去尋找新大陸，正如他所希望的那樣，他們一去便再也沒有回來。終於，能夠替你說話的人一個都不剩了，在他的指使下，那些阿諛奉承之輩便出面請求他做納尼亞的國王。當然，他欣然接受了這請求。"
"你的意思是他現在又想除掉我嗎？""毫無疑問。"
"可是爲什麼要等到現在？要是他想這麼幹，早就可以下手的。我做了什麼傷害他的事情？"
"兩個小時前發生的一件事徹底改變了你的命運——王后生了個兒子。""
"我不明白那與我有什麼關係。"凱斯賓迷惑不解地說。
"還不明白！"博士叫道，"我給你上的那些歷史課和政治課，就沒有讓你更加聰明一些嗎？聽着，在他還沒有自己的兒子時，只好由你來繼承王位，雖然他並不愛你，但他寧可把王位傳給你，而不願傳給一個外人。現在他有了兒子，自然希望自己的兒子來繼承王位。這時你就變得礙事了，是吧？他當然要把你這障礙除掉。"
"他真的那麼壞嗎？"凱斯賓感到震驚，"他真的會謀害我？"
"他已經謀殺了你的父親！”克奈爾斯博士回答。凱斯賓心裏十分難受，半天沒開口。
"我可以把整個事情的經過告訴你，"博士說，"但不是現在，時間來不及了，你必須趕緊離開這裏。"
"你和我一起走嗎？”
"不行，那會使你的處境更加危險。兩個人比一個人的目標更大。親愛的王子，親愛的凱斯賓國王，勇敢些！你必須一個人走，馬上就走口設法越過南部邊境，找到阿欽蘭國的國王奈恩。他會仁慈地接待你的。""
"我再也見不着你了嗎？"凱斯賓的聲音有些顫抖。
"我衷心希望我們還有再見的那天，親愛的國王。"博士也有些神色黯然，"在這蒼茫大地上，除了陪下你，我已沒有其他朋友！我會一些小小的法術，可是現在速度就是一切。你走以前，請收下我這兩件微不足道的禮物。這是一小袋金子——啊，這個城堡裏所有的財寶都理應是你的財產。這兒有一件比金子珍貴百倍的東西。"
說着，他把一件東西放在凱斯賓的於上。凱斯賓看不清楚那是什麼，但憑觸覺他知道那是一隻號。
"這是納尼亞最寶貴、最神聖的一件東西，爲了找到它，我忍受了種種的恐怖，唸了無數遍的咒語，那時候我還很年輕。這是蘇珊女王的一隻神號，是在納尼亞消失之前她留在這裏的。據說，無論是誰吹響了它，這號角都會帶來神靈的幫助——誰也說不出那將是怎樣的幫助，也許它能把女王露茜、國王愛德蒙、女王蘇珊和至尊王彼得召喚回來。他們將爲我們這片苦難的土地伸張正義。也許這隻號甚至能把阿斯蘭喚回來。帶着它吧，凱斯賓國王！但是，記住|不到最緊急的關頭不要使用它。趕快走吧，快！高塔底層那扇通往花園的小門沒有鎖，在那裏我們就必須分手了。"
"可以帶着我的馬戴思特里爾嗎？"凱斯賓有些茫然不知所措。
"全都準備好了，它正在果園邊上等着你呢。"
一邊走下那長長的旋轉樓梯，克奈爾斯一邊又輕聲講了許多指示和建議的話。凱斯賓心亂如麻，可是他努力把這些話全都記在心裏。不久，他們呼吸到了花園裏新鮮的空氣，小道上傳來戴思特里爾的蹄聲和親熱的嘶叫聲，老少兩人終於依依不捨地告別。就這樣，凱斯賓十世離開了他父親的城堡。當他回過身來時，他看到天上升起無數的禮花，那是在慶祝新王子的誕生。
在他所熟悉的土地上，他整夜馬不停蹄地奔向南方。開始他只敢走小路或便道，後來，當他確信沒有伏兵時，索性縱馬在大路上飛奔起來。戴思特里爾對這不尋常的旅行同樣激動萬分，而凱斯賓儘管在同克奈爾斯博士告別時眼淚汪汪，現在則勇氣十足，甚至感到有些快樂，因爲他獲得了真正的自由，並且將像傳說中的那些遊俠騎士一樣，在探險的路上披荊斬棘，一往無前。黎明時分，天上落下一陣毛毛細雨，凱斯賓勒住馬，四下望去，只見周圍都是陌生的森林、茂密的野菊和青色的羣山。看到這世界是這樣的遼闊壯觀，他感到自己是這樣的渺小，心裏不禁有些緊張。"
天光大亮後，凱斯賓離開大路，在森林中找到一片草地，打算在這裏好好休息一下。他卸下戴思特里爾身上的鞍子，讓它在一旁吃草，自己則坐下來，吃些冷雞，喝點兒酒，然後舒舒服服地躺在草地上，很快就進入了夢鄉——他實在累極了。一覺醒來，天色已近黃昏，他草草吃了點兒東西，便又上路，依然是朝着南方。穿過大片荒蕪的原野，不久便來到一片山地。這兒道路崎嶇，時上時下，而且彷彿上山的路比下山的路要多。每登上一個山脊，他便注意到前面那些山巒顯得越來越近，色調也越來越深。當夜幕降臨時，他已經走在那座大山的山坡上了。突然，天上颳起了大風，接着便是雷聲隆隆，暴雨如注。戴思特里爾變得焦躁不安起來。這時，他們走進一個漆黑一團、似乎沒有盡頭的松樹林。凱斯賓一下子想起了他曾聽過的那些故事。故事裏的樹林對人類總是很不友善。他的家族曾經到處砍伐樹木，還和所有山林家族打仗，濫殺無辜。雖然他本人和那些臺爾馬人不同，可樹木哪裏知道這個？8
它們的確不知道。風越刮越猛，狂風暴雨搖撼着整個樹林，發出一陣陣呼嘯。突然一聲巨響，一棵大樹倒在他身後的路上。"安靜些，戴思特里爾，安靜些！"凱斯賓拍拍馬的脖子，可自己卻難以剋制地哆嗦起來。他慶幸自己從死神手裏逃了出來——因爲只差那麼一點兒，那棵大樹就會把他們都砸死。天上的閃電令人目眩，一聲巨大的響雷好像要把天空劈成兩半，戴思特里爾拼命地奔跑起來，凱斯賓是個很不錯的騎於，但此時他卻無法拉住繮繩。他緊緊地貼在馬背上，心裏明白這樣瘋狂地奔跑對他是多麼危險。黑暗中，一棵接一棵的大樹向他迎面撲來，又從身邊一閃而過。突然，他感到前額被什麼東西猛擊了一下，以後便什麼也不知道了。5
醒來之後，他發現自己躺在明亮溫暖的篝火旁，胳膊和腿上傷痕累累，而且頭痛得厲害。這時，身邊傳來低低的講話聲。
"現在，"一個聲音說，"在他醒來之前，我們必須商定一個處置他的辦法。"
"幹掉他！"另個聲音說，"咱們不能讓他活着，他會出賣我們的。"
"咱們本來就該當場下手幹掉他的，或者是放他過去。"這是第三個聲音，"可是我們把他帶了回來，給他包紮好頭上的傷口，並細心地照料他，現在卻要殺他，這算怎麼一回事啊。"
"先生們，"凱斯賓說，聲音很微弱，"你們怎樣對待我都可以，只希望你們能仁慈地對待我那匹可憐的馬。"
驚愕中一陣長時間的沉默。
"我們發現你的時候，那匹馬早就跑掉了。"第一個聲音說——這聲音沙啞而憨厚，聽起來有些古怪。
"別聽他對你甜言蜜語，"這是第二個聲音，"我還是堅持……
"尼克布瑞克！"第三個聲音高聲說，"咱們決不能殺掉他，真可恥！特魯佛漢特，你說我們該怎麼辦？"
"先給他喝點兒水。"又是第一個聲音，也許是特魯佛漢特。一個黑影朝牀邊走來，凱斯賓感到有一條胳膊輕輕渭到他的肩上——但願這是一條人的胳膊，但不完全像。俯向他的那張臉似乎也不對勁，那是一張毛茸茸的臉，正中一隻長長的鼻子，兩頰上還有古怪的白斑。"這準是一種特殊的口罩，"凱斯賓思忖，"要不然就是我發燒產生的幻覺。"一杯又甜又熱的東西放到他的嘴邊，他一口氣喝了下去。這時，篝火被撥得更旺了一些，凱斯賓幾乎失聲叫起來，因爲他藉着篝火的光亮，一下子看清了正對着他的那張臉。那不是一個人！那是一隻灌。儘管它遠比他以前見過的任何一隻灌都大，卻更加友善，也更加聰明。而且可以肯定，剛纔一直在講話的就是它。他還看出，自己是在一個山洞裏，正躺在用石南草鋪成的牀上。在火堆旁邊，坐着兩個長着長鬍須的小個子，他們比克奈爾斯博士更顯得粗胖矮小，毛髮也更濃密粗硬。他立即斷定他們是小矮人——真正的純種小矮人。凱斯賓意識到，他終於發現了古老的納尼亞。激動之中，他又感到一陣眩暈。
以後的幾天裏，凱斯賓漸漸熟悉了他們的名字：那灌叫特魯佛漢特，年紀最大，也最忠厚，主張殺掉他的，是一個脾氣很壞的黑小矮人，他的頭髮和鬍鬚都是黑色的，像馬鬃一樣，又粗又硬，他叫尼克布瑞克：另一位是個紅小矮人，長着狐狸般火紅的頭髮，他的名字叫杜魯普金。
"無論如何，"在凱斯賓能夠坐起來說話的第一天晚上，尼克布瑞克對他的同伴們說，"我們要商定一個辦法來處置這個人。你們兩個攔着不讓我殺他，還以爲是做了一件大好事。我看，這件事情的最終結局，是我們不得不把他囚禁終身。我決不讓他活着離開這裏——回到他的同類那裏，把我們的祕密都泄露出去。"
"嘿，嘿，嘿！尼克布瑞克！"杜魯普金皺了皺眉頭說，
"你爲什麼講話這麼粗野？這傢伙的頭撞在了我們洞外的樹上，但這並不是他的過錯。我看他不像是個奸細。"
"在決定放不放我之前，"凱斯賓說，"你們首先應該搞清楚，我是不是想走。說實話，我並不打算離開這裏。假如你們允許的話，我想和你們在一起。這些年來，我一直都在尋找你們。"
"說得好聽！"尼克布瑞克咆哮起來，"你是一個臺爾馬人，人類的一分子，對不對？你怎麼會不想回到你的同類那裏去呢引"
"可是，即使想回去，我也回不去了，"凱斯賓憂鬱地說，"我是因爲逃命才撞在了你們的樹上。國王想殺掉我，假如你們把我殺了，那正是幫他做了件好事。"
"在我們這裏，"特魯佛漢特安慰道，"你不必害怕！"
"嗯？"杜魯普金很感興趣地問"你說什麼？你做了什麼錯事，小小年紀就成了彌若茲的對頭？"
"他是我的叔父。"凱斯賓話音未落，尼克布瑞克已經跳了起來，右手握住了他的寶劍。
"好哇！"他叫道，"不僅僅是一個臺爾馬人，而且是我們最大敵人的侄子和繼承人。你們現在還發傻嗎？還想留這傢伙一條活命嗎？"多虧灌和杜魯普金及時擋住了他，使勁把他推回到他的座位上去，否則，凱斯賓也許當場就被刺死了。+
"我最後一次警告你，尼克布瑞克，"杜魯普金咬牙切齒地說，"你要是再不老實，我和特魯佛漢特就要一齊懲罰你了！"
尼克布瑞克悻悻地坐了下去。於是，另外兩個開始要求凱斯賓把他的經歷全部講出來。當凱斯賓講完了他的故事，山洞裏出現了一刻寂靜。
"我從來沒有聽到過這樣的怪事兒。"杜魯普金說。
"我不喜歡這故事，"尼克布瑞克說，"想不到在人類中，還有那麼多關於我們的傳說。其實，他們知道得越少越好，那個多嘴的老保姆，應該綁住她的舌頭！而那個什麼博士更是把事情都搞得亂七八糟，該死的混血小矮人！我憎恨他們！我恨他們勝過恨那些人類！你們記着我的話，這些人將給我們帶來無窮的後患！”
"你不要再不懂裝懂了，尼克布瑞克，"特魯佛漢特說，
"你們這些小矮人和人類一樣健忘，讓人捉摸不透。我是個動物，一隻灌而已。我們從不朝三暮四，總是一如既往。我認爲事情發展下去，將對我們大有好處。在我們前面的是納尼亞真正的君主，一位真正的國王。他回到了真正的納尼亞，儘管你們小矮人已經忘記了，可我們動物們卻依然記得:只有亞當的兒子做國王，納尼亞才能得安寧。"
"喂，特魯佛漢特！”杜魯普金冷笑道，"你是想把這個國家拱手送給人類吧？"
"我並不是那個意思，"灌回答說，"這不是人類的國家(這一點我比誰都知道得更清楚)，但這是一個要由人來統治的國家。我們灌有足夠的記性來記住這一點，不是嗎？上蒼保佑，那至尊王彼得不就是個人嗎？"
"難道你真的相信那些古老的傳說？"杜魯普金問。
"告訴你，我們動物堅信不移，我們動物！”特魯佛漢特提高聲音，"我們沒有忘記過去，我們相信曾經在凱爾帕拉維爾治理納尼亞的至尊王彼得和其他幾個人，正如我們相信阿斯蘭一樣，決不動搖！"
"恕我冒昧，"杜魯普金尖刻地說，"恐怕當今世上相信阿斯蘭的只有你一個了吧！”
"我也相信，"凱斯賓激動地插嘴道，"也許從前我只是半信半疑，但現在我相信了。那些嘲笑阿斯蘭的人同樣也從來不相信關於會講話的動物和小矮人的傳說。有時候，我的確也感到迷惑，世上到底有沒有這麼個阿斯蘭，有沒有你們這樣的生靈。瞧|你們就在這裏。",
"說得對，"特魯佛漢特說，"千真萬確，凱斯賓國王，只要你忠實於古老的納尼亞，你就是我的國王，不管別人說什麼，國王陛下萬歲！"
"你真讓我覺得肉麻，灌。"尼克布瑞克哼哼說，"不錯，至尊王彼得和他的弟妹是人，可他們是不同種類的人，我們面前的卻是一個該詛咒的臺爾馬人。他們曾經把圍獵屠殺我們當作遊戲。老實說，你有沒有過？"他猛地把身子轉向凱斯賓。!
"好吧，說實話，我是那麼做過，"凱斯賓誠實地說，"可那些完全是普通的不會講話的動物。"
"反正全一樣。"尼克布瑞克說。
"不，不，不，"特魯佛漢特爭辯說，"那可不一樣，你明明知道，先生！如今生活在納尼亞的動物與我們是不同的，那不過是些可憐的啞巴，毫無理性的生靈。這樣的動物在卡樂門和臺爾馬，以及在世界各個地方都不難找到。它們個子比較小，長相、顏色也不相同，與我們之間的差距，比起混血小矮人與你們的差距真是大多了。"
他們就這樣爭論了很久，最後致決定讓凱斯賓留下來。他們甚至還答應，一旦他完全康復，便馬上領他去見其他那些"自己人"。顯然，在這荒山野林之中，納尼亞的老住戶們至今還躲躲藏藏地生活着。'
