༄ 𝘞𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘳 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘦 (𝘗𝘊) ༄

Chapter 14: Aftermath of the Battle

This chapter is a tad on the morbid side. Sorry about that but I kind of had to work out a way for Ana to survive (can't kill her off this early, can I? ;)). This was how it worked best. I believe it's also a tad longer than the other chapters. (I think).

𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍𑁍

The onslaught of arrows continued. Both Telmarines and Narnians alike were hit and many killed. A majority of the Narnians trapped inside were right at the gate. Although we tried to fight our way through it, we knew there was no escape. Several were slain within feet of the gate. The bodies piled up. But they still fought as hard as they could, many taking many arrows before they collapsed.

I managed to take out a few Telmarines, but Narnians were falling down around me. I knew it wouldn't be long before I was killed. On my own, I couldn't do enough damage to make a difference. With the Narnians' help, there was at least hope. But very few could take more than a few hits and none lasted long enough to take many Telmarines with them.

"Ana!" someone cried and I looked around for the source. Before I could find it, something—or rather someone—pushed me. An arrow breezed past and I fell to the ground, hitting my head on something hard in the process. I had just enough time to see a minotaur collapse before my vision blurred and everything went black.

When I awoke, everything was quiet. I wasn't sure how long I had been unconscious but by then the fighting had stopped. My head throbbed and whenever I tried to move to examine my surroundings, I almost passed out again. Definitely a concussion, but from what I could tell I had no other injuries. There was a heavyweight on my legs and I thought something might have fallen on me. I didn't know if I would even be able to walk.

"Check for survivors!" someone shouted and I tried to find the source. I couldn't see anyone from my limited view and tried to raise my head to look further. The movement caused dizziness and nausea to rise up and I couldn't fight it. The last thing I heard before I passed out again was: "Kill any survivors and burn them all."

The next time I awoke, I heard voices and footsteps nearby. I wasn't sure how much time had elapsed but knew I was still in the courtyard. Knowing they were checking for survivors, my only way to get out was to pretend I was dead. I had to remain perfectly still and keep my breathing as steady as possible. If they checked close enough, I figured I could hold my breath.

"These are all dead," a different voice from before said. They weren't too far away from me and I closed my eyes as their footsteps drew closer.
"These as well," another said. "Wait... What's this?" I felt the weight on my legs shift and be removed. They were numb but I didn't feel any pain, indicating they likely weren't broken. "Looks like one of the royals got left behind." I quickly realized they were talking about me and held my breath.
"Is she dead?" said the first voice.
"Looks like it... She's not moving or breathing. Her head was bleeding at some point, likely from that thing there." I couldn't see him, but I figured he was pointing at a weapon. "It probably killed her instantly."
"Dead like the rest of her companions. How fitting that the Queen should die with her people."
"She looks rather young... Such a shame a beauty like her had to die."
"Well, serves them right for being rulers of these foul creatures." Both men chuckled and it took everything in me not to react. "When we load her on the wagon with the others, we can give her weapons to Lord Miraz as a gift. He'll be pleased to know one of their own didn't survive this egregious attack."

The two laughed again and their footsteps departed. I released the breath I was holding and tried to plan my escape. Being cautious of my aching head, I slowly raised it to get a better look. There was a pile of bodies just to my left, blocking my view into the courtyard. I would have to push myself up on my elbows to see anything more. But I couldn't risk that until I knew where the Telmarines are. If they knew I was alive, nothing good would happen. My only chance of survival was to escape before they realized I was missing.