Peter and Edmund stopped their horses beside Caspian, and Lucy followed directly behind. Although Caspian's frame was broad and muscular, it did not keep her from seeing what could have possibly been her worst nightmare.
It was a bloodbath. Everyone sat frozen at the edge of the forest gazing upon the thousands of carcasses scattered across the blood stained grassy hills. They watched in horror as Vartan's army slaughtered Narnian after Narnian, hoping it was merely a dream.
There were no reinforcements. Maybe they had not arrived yet?
Caspian could only see his native red and green armor shining in the sun and Vartan's black and white armor. It shocked him that his own army, merely a total of five thousand, had stood against an army of more than twelve thousand soldiers. For hours. But there were so many wounded. Vartan's army now outnumbered them one Narnian for every six of his. Caspian watched in complete terror as two centaurs were slaughtered by at least twenty men and it was beyond heartbreaking to see so many loyal Narnians fall.
They were still holding their ground, but if they did not receive any reinforcements soon, they would not be able to hold their ground.
Edmund was the first to react out of everyone. He turned his head and looked directly at Caspian. "Are we just going to sit here, or are we actually going to do something?" He asked, trying to sound sarcastic, but the light did not quite reach his eyes.
Caspian looked to the glistening Eastern Ocean and asked quietly. "Are you with me?"
"To the death." The eldest Pevensie answered without hesitation as memories flooded through his mind of his very first battle.
Caspian turned and looked at the rest of his brigade, expecting every face to be downcast and fearful of what was about to occur. Instead, every pair of eyes were staring at him intently waiting for his command. An overwhelming feeling of gratitude landed on Caspian then, as each Narnian mentally offered him their life, their very fate, for king and country. He knew he could not guarantee they would live through this day, and he knew that they all were most likely to perish, but he knew they were doing this because they believed in a free Narnia. However, he knew the biggest reason they decided to give their lives. For Aslan. The King of the Whole Wood. The Author and Protector of Narnia, and the greatest friend any of them had ever known. Even if he did not save them from their death, they had faith in him.
"Caspian." Lucy called gently from behind Caspian. He looked over his shoulder.
"Aslan has done far too much for Narnia. We cannot fail to act in the end. What a waste that would be." Lucy reminded him. "Please no not lose hope." She added quietly.
"You've never lost your faith have you?" He found himself asking in complete wonder.
"How could I, when 'Aslan is on the move?' " She whispered with a smirk and gave Peter and Edmund a brief nod. After receiving her signal, they immediately turned their heads immediately to the valley below and threw their swords in salute.
"For Narnia!" Peter's and Edmund's baritone voices cried as blood veins protruded along their necks and foreheads as they cried with everything they had within them. Hope and Faith rising, Caspian joined in for the most important battle cry of all. "AND for Aslan!" Everyone sprung forward in a V shape line, Caspian leading the rank, with Peter and Edmund behind, followed by Lucy who expertly pulled her bow and arrows from her quiver as they charged down the hill towards an unknown future. But for the first time in years, Caspian felt peace, and most important of all, hope.
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Elwyn and Trumpkin were not hard to find. They both stood at the front of the lines and worked together to kill as many men as they could block. As they galloped closer with their horses, Lucy studied their actions, and she noticed that Elwyn and the dwarf waited until one of their enemies decided to strike first before they acted and finished him. Lucy watched closely as a soldier ran up to Elwyn and tried to swiftly execute her head, but she easily blocked it, ricocheted the momentum, and threw her sword downward cutting an open area in the man's armor, his neck. Blood flew across her face, but she did not seemed fazed. Trumpkin used the same strategy, and it seemed to be working, but there were still an endless supply of armored soldiers fighting for Vartan, scattered across the field. It was one swift movement for Elwyn and Trumpkin, and when an enemy troop decided to strike, it would be the very last thing that soldier would ever do.
They'd work together by keeping their backs close together, enabling them from attracting any unwanted attention aimed toward their backs.
Narnians were known for their expertise in combat. Every country in the world knew it. And though Vartan outnumbered them, it was easy to see that most of his troops had never seen a battlefield. Yes they were large, stocky, and intimidating, but Lucy knew it was all an act. And it gave her hope as she watched it only take one swift movement for Elwyn and Trumpkin to eliminate.
Caspian, Peter, and Edmund did not waste anytime. They urged their horses to a bolt and expertly slashed any man they came across in thick heavy armor. After arriving near Vartan and Elwyn, the three men easily lept from their horses and killed any nearby enemies easily.
"Happy you could join us." Trumpkin said sarcastically as blood splashed on his forehead from slitting a man's throat. The dwarf, Elwyn, Lucy, and the three kings stayed in hearing distance from each other, letting each opponent come to them.
"We did not expect an attack so soon." Peter explained as he occupied himself with another enemy.
"Well neither did we." Trumpkin humphed as he blocked a strike aimed for his head. "We've got less than a thousand still alive on our side, and over seven thousand on Vartan's according to our scouts." He said gesturing to the sky, and Peter could not help but smirk as he saw several Griffins soaring high in the sky.
"You know, I was told by a wise centaur long ago that numbers do not win a battle." Peter said easily.
"No, but they do help." Trumpkin stated before thrusting his sword through a giant man's throat, killing him instantly, thus having the greatest effect.
"Where are all of the weak points in the armor?" Edmund yelled as he blocked several advances with a smirk.
"Throat, forehead, below the abdomen, elbows, and kneecaps." Elwyn said easily as she blocked two advances from two opponents, but in just four moves, they both fell to the ground.
"Lucy! We need more men." She heard the dwarf yelling in her direction as she struck her blade through a man's neck. That was all she needed to hear.
Though she was busy merely trying to stay alive as men in every direction tried to distract and strike her, she saw Caspian come in her peripheral vision, and soon he had her area secured. She backed away without a second glance, and searched for any wounded but living Narnians nearby. There were more than she had realized, but she worked quickly, getting into her old routine of dropping one drop of her crimson cordial in each breathing mouth, and moving quickly to the next one, making herself turn before she got to see the healing process, for it had always mesmerized her, and she knew she needed to keep moving. She always felt saddened when she would find a dead creature or man in narnian armor who had fought bravely for his country and for Aslan. She decided to force herself not to dwell on the dead, but to look at the living, and joy never ceased to surge through her veins every time she heard someone start choking and gasping only seconds after she placed a drop of cordial on someone.
"Lucy wake up!" She heard Elwyn yelling. She suddenly turned and saw a blade coming down on her head. She tried to block it, but it was too late. It ricocheted off of her blade and cut off a generous chunk of her shoulder. She cried out in pain, and she suddenly felt dizzy. She started to stagger as her vision began to blur, but instead of hitting the ground, she found herself being caught in a strong set of arms. She felt her eyes slowly starting to close against her will, while feeling a hand yank something from her belt. She suddenly felt a cool feeling in her shoulder, and soon the pain completely stopped and she found it was easy keep her eyes open as if nothing had ever happened. She looked up into Caspian's face and smiled lazily.
"Told you I wasn't going anywhere."
Caspian smirked in reply as he gently shoved her away. "Go get us some more soldiers."
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There were too many of them. Lucy had lost count of how many lives she had taken, and her entire body began to ache from the strenuous effort it took to stay alive. She had healed as many wounded as she could find, but it was not an effective method. Searching out wounded took time, and she realized that Caspian needed every working hand he could get. After reviving close to five hundred narnians, she pulled off of the healing task, and switched back to fighting. Lucy quickly glanced up to the sky overhead while plunging her bloody sword into an unarmored man's chest. She quickly thought of the distance the sun hung in, while easily killing three more men, and from the destination the sun was in the sky, it had been close to two hours since she had jumped off of her horse and had begun fighting. They were still holding ground, but it was by the skin of their teeth. Though Narnia was considered one of the smaller countries, they were known to be vicious and were very well trained for battle. But it was complete chaos, and it was only by the Lions mane that they had not all lost and died yet. Vartan was nowhere to be found, and when she had started started fighting again, Caspian warned her to stay close to him, making sure she would not be alone if she had to face him. With Caspian being so close, there were many times she and him had worked as a team to kill a number of men at once. Peter and Edmund stayed nearby as well, never getting further than fifty yards.
The supply of enemy soldiers seemed to never run out, and Lucy's entire body screamed as she constantly used every muscle to throw hard sword swings and to block opponents. She also clenched her muscles to keep her agile, opposed to being loose and flimsy. Her hope began to fade as her sword became harder and harder to hold and swing. Her entire body felt like it was on fire. She did know why she felt like this, however. In the Golden Age, she had been trained for full day battles, having built up enough endurance to where she could fight easily for hours, but now she had lived the past three years in England sitting around and studying. Even though her entire body screamed, she had to admit that she had missed gripping a shimmering sword hilt in her hand, the feel of a brisk ocean breeze against her skin, a little swordplay, and an unknown fate staring her in the face. She would not let her hope fade, everyone needed someone to be strong and positive, even when all hope seemed lost. But that still would not stop her from crying out in her mind.
'Oh Aslan, I do not know how much longer we can hold them off.' Lucy found herself thinking as she crossed blades with yet another enemy. Every time she impacted her blade against her opponent, her entire body screamed in protest, she was too exhausted. She had to be careful though, the man she faced was well over six feet tall and as beefy as they come.
And I do not know how much longer I can endure this.
"What did you say?" Her opponent asked curiously with a smirk as he easily blocked off one of her swings. Had she spoken aloud? She silently scolded herself for giving her weakness away and blocked her opponents next strike to her chest, and it took everything she had, and then more. She knew she could not beat him with her strength, as faded as it was, so she decided on a new strategy, speed and agility. She knew she had the advantage at only five feet four inches and one hundred and thirty pounds, versus her opponent who had to weigh at least two hundred and fifty pounds. After barely blocking his blow to her chest, she struck her gore filled sword just below his left bicep, satisfied after hearing the vibrating ring metal displayed when impacting human flesh, and left a clean, a foot long, four inch deep gash. She waited for him to take the bait.
When he grunted and instinctively raised his hand and sword on his left arm in attempt to comfort it, Lucy struck again. She dove her blade straight through his elbow, one of the most sensitive places in the human body, and when he screamed in pain, she quickly silenced it by throwing her sword straight through his neck. It sickened her when she heard his neck bone completely snap from her blade, and his eyes bulged in consequence, and apparent shock was evident on his face. She quickly yanked the sword out of his beefy neck, and she walked away before she had to listen to him choking and gargling on his own blood. She turned away, expecting to see Caspian nearby easily fending off a number of enemy troops, but when she turned, she completely froze.
Vartan had finally come out of hiding, and his only target was Caspian. They faced each other, Vartan grinning wickedly, and a dark unmistakeable anger evident in Caspian's expression. The air around them seemed icy and sharp as they prepared to fight each other to the death. Each armies continued to fight, but every mind was only on their leader and who he was facing.
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Caspian was done with the whole charade. What made Vartan think he could just jump in and take Narnia's beloved queen and somehow managed to think it would be okay to torture her for fun?
And what made him think he could steal his son? The boy was only two! Who did he think he was? By the Lion's mane he was going to finish this.
"General Vartan." Caspian said with a foul smirk as he stood before him. "Do tell, what exactly are you doing invading my country merely hours after I almost killed you?"
"First of all, it's Lord Vartan." The evil man said angrily. "And secondly, The land of Narnia will finally be mine, once I kill the last of your bloodline. Which reminds me,where is your son, Caspian?" He sneered. "I was going to kill him in front of you, but now I like this arrangement much better. I will kill you first, and then nothing will stop me from taking the life of your only heir. Finally diminishing your legacy forever.
"He will scream as I swing my sharp blade through his creamy, soft, unharmed skin. And he will cry out as I begin to cut him into tiny little pieces, but this time, his father will not be able to save him, and that will be the last thing he ever remembers before I remove his head from his body." He finished, eyes already glowing in anticipation. Caspian was only too glad he had told Rilian to hide in the woods before they had descended into battle. The man was insane. Bonkers in the head, but could he blame the man? After only scheming for revenge and wasting years living in the shadows with his young son, he was keen to go insane.
"You are mad Vartan." Caspian replied calmly as he analyzed weak points in Vartan's armor. The Harfangian armor was heavy, thick, and strong. It had its advantages, but Caspian knew heavy armor did not help in the slightest when it came to endurance and agility in battles. The armor itself had been carefully placed to create the strongest effect. It covered almost every part except for a few weak points under the shoulder -where the pads flared out-, under the abdomen, and his entire head and face, for he wore no helmet. He held his sword in a comfortable grip and continued to think of a strategy as he carried a conversation, hoping to enflame his temper. "What a shame it is that you have lived your entire life in hatred, when you could have had so much more."
Vartan scoffed rudely. "Oh you mean like yours? You spent your entire life in fear. You ran away in fear of being killed by your own kin, but you were also afraid to rule a kingdom. You were so frightened to face your uncle that you had to summon the ancient Kings and Queens so they could solve your little problem. But you were still in fear. You even had someone fight your uncle for you, you Caspian, the son of a king! And when a sword was handed to you enabling you to end his life, you still could not do it. And now, you are afraid to kill me, as you have summoned them again. You are nothing but a coward Caspian." Vartan finished with a sickening grin.
Caspian felt himself unable to shake off Vartan's stinging words.
Was he a coward? Afraid to kill because his worst fear was that he would only end up like Miraz? Surely showing mercy was not a sign of cowardice, was it? But as he stared at the corrupt man, he knew he was far from being a coward. Showing mercy was indeed not a sign of cowardice, but one of humble character. As he looked intently at Vartan, it suddenly dawned on him that there was a time for mercy, and a time to kill. He had already shown the hateful man mercy, so he knew that this time, he needed to finish this for once and for all. He felt at peace with the task before him, and felt that if Aslan was with him, he would have accepted his decision. The realization made Caspian feel stronger and more confident.
"Vartan, you know I am no coward." Caspian smiled easily as he gripped the hilt of his magnificent Narnian sword once more. "If I was a coward, I would not kill you now." That was all Caspian said before a war cry ignited from his lips, and expertly closed the distance between them. Caspian easily lifted his sword high in the air and intended to swing it down to Vartan's head, like an ax chopping wood, which would have killed him instantly. Although Vartan was not ready for the first blow, he was still able to block Caspian's powerful blow intended for his skull by sheer reflex. Caspian still held momentum, and he quickly reared back and threw his sword around aiming for Vartan's right shoulder. He easily blocked Caspian's second strike and chuckled.
"Ah I am impressed. You have already found the weak spots in this armor." Before he could react, Vartan unexpectedly dove his sword straight through Caspian's knee, erupting his nerves with sheer pain as the blade crushed the sensitive bone. It was the most painful thing he had ever experienced in his life. Caspian could not help but cry out as he heard the cracks and crunches his very body was making.
When she heard his scream in agony, Lucy quickly struck her sword through another man's neck, before letting herself turn and look for Caspian. She stood completely frozen as Vartan roughly retrieved his sword from Caspian's leg, and she heard his whimper as he collapsed, sword in hand, onto his good knee. Vartan gleamed as he slowly raised his sword high above his head, anticipating every moment before his victory.
"Goodbye Caspian. I told you I always get what I desire."
"No, you always almost get what you want." Caspian said easily before making one final, painful lunge upward and thrust his sword straight through Vartan's neck.
Complete shock spread across the man's face, and a river of blood poured from his throat. Vartan soon fell and began to gurgle and choke on his blood, while Caspian sat with him. Caspian felt sorry for the years Vartan wasted on revenge, and the least he could do was sit beside him until he faded away.
Everyone still fought, and it was as if no one knew what Caspian had done. Except Lucy. She started to rush over, but not before a man in armor and helmet reached him. Caspian did not see the man approach until he felt a shadow cross over him. He slowly looked up and saw a gleaming blade plummeting down toward him, and he knew it was too late.
He felt the blade find its way through his insides, ripping through organs, and he felt his world began to spin. Then the pain came. Everything happened so fast. The man pulled his helmet off, and Caspian looked into the face of his perpetrator. His heart stopped and he felt the blood drain from his face, but not because he was bleeding out. "Vellum." He choked out. "But I killed you."
That was the last thing Lucy heard before her entire world went black.
A/N
I hope you liked it! Sorry it took me so long to update! I'm only in 11th grade and I'm taking 2 college classes, I'm part time homeschooling, and I take a class at a public school so I can swim on the swim team. And I'm one of the leads in the school musical, so I have to do that after school with swim. And I love on a dairy farm, so I have to get up at 4:30 and I never get to take a nap because I'm enrolled in 3 schools. But its all good life is good, and I'm happy I updated, so I'm sorry it took so long! This chapter was a lot of work so a comment would be so very much appreciated!!! Thanks!
-Gloria