Taking place about six years after the four Pevensies entered Narnia.

Chapter One:

"Watch out, Ed!" Peter called to his brother, just as a Tarkaan scepter came from behind. Edmund turned in time to meet the blow. Peter turned back to the men charging at him, wishing for a free hand to wipe the sweat that was dripping off his forehead.

The southern lands had been attacking the Narnian boundary lines for days – and the Narnians seemed helplessly outnumbered this time, especially since Aslan wasn't there to help as he had in the first great battle.

At least the girls were safe in the castle. They had agreed that their skills could be just as useful caring for the wounded. Susan put up more of a fight than Lucy over the matter, but Peter's title of High King had come in handy once again. Su hadn't held it against him, thankfully.

"King Peter – look to the sky!" One of the centaurs nearest to him called in wonder.

Peter finished off the enemy he was fighting and let his attention be briefly diverted. He saw that the eagles were coming in for another swoop with their sharp talons and was relieved. It was helpful to have an army as unique as this.

He kept at the battle and waited for the piercing cry that the birds usually gave just before attacking. A few moments later he saw a Tarkaan ahead of him brought down by an arrow in the chest. Peter snapped his head around, knowing that the archers were further back. A fresh wave of arrows fell from the sky as he looked. He was almost knocked off his horse at the realization that what he had taken for Narnian eagles were actually dragons, and the riders were pelting their enemy with arrows. Any dragons left in Narnia were on the islands, and not trained for combat.

By dusk they had managed to make enough of a deficit in the opposing army that the southern troops surrendered, swearing that they would not give up – when their army was ready they would be back.

The Narnians were in rough shape – but not as badly off as they could have been. Peter was sure that their chances would have been slim without the intervention of those dragon riders.

The young King made his way through the dispersing crowd to the upper field where the dragons were resting. He saw that Edmund was already speaking with the leader.

"Thank you, sir." Peter started as soon as he was close enough for the leader to hear. The stranger's back was to Peter, and turned to see who was breaking into the conversation. Peter's jaw dropped slightly to see a feminine head and neck graced the full suit of armor.

"You are most welcome, King Peter." She dipped her head of brown tresses that were tied back from her face. "Queen Tara Aerida of Caernarfon at your service." Peter gave an astonished smile at the introduction. This woman was full of surprises. Commanding officer of an army of dragon riders, as well as Queen of a neighboring country.

"We are in your debt, Queen Tara. Know that we will be at your side in any time of trouble."

"Thank you." Tara nodded, and then a troubled expression came over her face, and her eyes seemed to stare off into space. She looked back at the men. "We must be leaving now." Tara excused herself before either brother could stop her. They watched as the dragon-force took off in unison and flew away.

"Angel?" Edmund suggested, still watching the skyline where they had disappeared, hope in his eyes.

Peter laughed. "Something tells me they were human, Ed." He clapped a hand on his brother's back. "Let's go check on our army."

- -

Back in Caernarfon, Tara quickly unsaddled her dragon and led it to go off to find food and rest. She had work waiting for her in the castle, but she could tell that one of the soldiers was suffering.

"David." She spoke urgently, feeling the pain grow more intense as she neared the middle-aged man, holding his arm, which was twisted at an odd angle.

"My Queen." David nodded and spoke through gritted teeth. A searing hurt filled Tara's right arm, causing her to gasp and hold it, until it passed after a moment.

"I'll send the doctor." Tara hurried to where the physician was looking over a dragon. Tara was glad that she couldn't feel pain from animals, as she informed the doctor of the injury and hurried off to complete her other tasks for the day. She had to put on a strong face for her people. They needed to trust her, even though she was young.

Her parents had been captured soon after her birth by a neighboring country, and Tara had only been saved by a nurse maid, who had hidden her in the kitchens. The advisors had ruled the country until Tara had turned 18, about three years ago.

She had been tutored well, and was an eager scholar. She had proven to use wisdom in her ruling so far, and her people were willing to trust that she would be as her parents were before her.

----

"You should have seen it, it was amazing!" Ed recounted the story to his sisters, with all the glory of a 17-year-old.

"I studied Caernarfon a few years ago. It's a bit to the north of Narnia." Susan informed them. "It's mostly made up of humans, and they've struggled over their land for a long time."

"What was the Queen like, Peter?" Lucy asked eagerly. She was 12 now, and made friends more easily than any of them. She had helped their transition into royalty become much easier by putting the creatures at ease with her open friendliness.

"She was young, like us. Probably around Susan's age, I would guess. She seemed to be a capable ruler, but I only talked with her briefly." Peter noted casually. Personally, he had found her to be a little defensive, and very strong, but he didn't voice these thoughts.

"I know! Let's invite them to a ball! To thank them for their help!" Lucy suggested.

"That's not a bad idea, Peter. It would open up a friendship between our countries." Susan noted.

"If you two would like to plan that, go right ahead." Peter agreed tiredly. "I need to go see if the Prime Minister of Archenland has responded yet." He left his sisters to coordinate the festivities and trudged up to his office.