Her heart was pounding in her chest.
Her breathing was quick and she was tired.
But Aria kept on fighting.
It was her determination and adrenaline that kept her going.
She knocked down Telmarines and blocked their attacks, ignoring the cuts they left on her skin.
She kicked back a Telmarine and before she could turn around, a Telmarine crashed into her with his shield.
Aria collapsed under the force, landing harshly on her back, the breath knocked from her chest as the Telmarine towered over.
She ignored the pain but her vision doubled as she fumbled around for her sword and kicked blindly at the man before her.
Aria's breathing quickened as the man straddled her, stopping her from moving.
He pinned her to the ground and drew his knife, holding it against the girl's throat.
Aria grabbed his hand and pushed it back.
But her hands shook under his strength.
The telmarine wrenched his hand free of her grip, slashing her across the cheek with the knife.
In her moment of shock, he pinned her arm underneath him, digging his boot clad feet into her wrist.
He held down her shoulder with one hand, bringing the blade closer to her.
The knife grazed her skin, a small line of blood appearing on her throat.
Aria swallowed. She pushed herself against the ground, wanting to get away from the sharp edge of the knife.
But with only one arm free, there was only little she could do.
She pushed against his hand harder and fought against his brute strength.
Aria felt tears in her eyes as she choked back a cry, struggling against the man's weight.
"Peter..", she choked out, her legs kicking to get the man off of her but the man bore a giant's weight.
His eyes were narrowed into slits behind his helmet, a certain glint in his eye relishing in the fact that he would be the one known for killing the spirit.
A tear rolled down her face as she thrashed around aimlessly, the strength in her arms giving out.
"Aria!", a strangled scream sounded in the distance and the girl shut her eyes tight.
Her strength gave out and as quickly as she did, she felt light and weightless.
She opened her eyes instantly and her eyes widened at the sight of a tree root extending across her vision.
"Aria! Please! You-", his words cut off as Peter pulled the girl to her feet and embraced her.
He pulled back and cupped her face in his palms, his eyes moving around her face.
"I almost watched you die!", he cried out, a tear rolling down his face as he hugged the girl again.
Aria sank into the embrace, relieved at the fact that she had survived.
She shuddered at the thought that she has been so close to death yet again by the hands of a Telmarine.
She pulled away from the boy, as the ground beneath her shook.
Roots broke free from the soil and wrapped themselves around Telmarines.
Aria jumped out of the way as a large root shot past her, grabbing a Telmarine and slamming him against the wall of the pit.
All around her, trees came to life, attacking and taking down Telmarines, all the while leaving the Narnians unharmed.
Aria watched with a wide smile.
She felt the return of energy and strength slowly building inside her.
She could feel herself growing much stronger, feeling light on her feet.
She glanced at the boy, a power surging through her.
"Aslan", she smiled and the boy nodded.
"Lucy did it".
Peter turned to the battlefield.
The Narnians were fighting back with more energy and hope and the boy felt the same way.
"Finally".
Peter turned to Aria as she spoke but his eyes widened at the sight before him.
Thick white smoke surrounded the girl.
It circled around her as it completely enveloped her and before Peter's eyes, Aria had disappeared into a thick cloud of white.
The pillar of white smoke rose above the ground and rushed through the air.
Peter watched open mouthed as Aria- who now was completely a thick cloud of smoke collided with the catapults, cleanly breaking through them.
"Witch!".
"It's the spirit!"
Telmarine men cried out as they scrambled away from the smoke.
Several seconds passed before Peter realised he had stopped breathing.
Sucking in a deep pull of air, he gaped at the destruction left behind.
Catapults were reduced into pieces.
Telmarines were running back to from where they had come from.
And in the middle of the trees that had come to life, the cloud of smoke attacked the Telmarines.
Caspian walked past him, gazing at the sight before him.
He turned back to the boy, smiling in awe.
"It's everything the stories have said. The trees! The creatures!", the boy called out in excitement.
"And Aria! The spirit has returned to her".
Peter lowered his sword, his mouth opening and closing unable to say anything.
Their plan had worked and he was happy far beyond words could describe.
But seeing Aria, non human - he didn't know the reason but it worried him.
He looked back at the Narnians and raised his sword in the air.
"For Aslan!", he cried out and the Narnians cheered as they all fought back harder- with more confidence and a new found hope.
Peter brought his sword down on a Telmarine, slicing at his knees and pushing him down.
The enemy numbers were decreasing as the Telmarines retreated, supposedly returning to the river.
Peter watched as the Telmarines made their way back into the forest, shouting in fear and disbelief.
"Peter!", a female voice cried out and Peter turned around.
A Telmarine attacked the boy, quickly disarming Peter as he was caught by surprise.
The boy crouched as the Telmarine swung his sword and before the Telmarine could attack again, a white smoke collided with him, a sword piercing his chest.
Aria pulled out her sword, letting the man drop to the ground and she turned to the boy with concern.
"Please don't die", she said and the boy shook his head mindlessly.
"Not counting on that", he replied as the girl picked up his sword and handed it to him.
"Come on, they are headed to Beruna".
To be continued...
A/N : I hope this isn't too magical for you 😅