*Scene of war and depictions of violence not suitable for everyone*
I don't own Chronicles of Narnia
The mood over the camp is the peculiar mixture of anticipation, dread, and hope that Edmund has learned to identify with the morning before battle and which this morning is more intense than before. Maybe because everyone anticipates this will be the end of the campaign, one that has allowed Ed a prolonged opportunity to learn about war. Among what he has learned are his observations about prebattle. Anticipation, it seems, is the natural feeling before battle. Excitement, a sort of energy pervades the camp as weapons are sharpened and plans reviewed. Everyone knows something big will happen and this sort of feeling brings a certain vigor which hangs over the camp's every action.
Dread is maybe the most obvious feeling, at least to him. Over the course of the campaign Ed has watched Narnians die, it is the outcome of war after all. Casualties may be minimal, though he privately thinks any are too much, but there is always a chance of being one of them. Worse still, there is always the chance of losing a loved one and that thought is far grimmer to him than forfeiting his own life. It goes beyond that too, war is as terrifying as it is exciting and Ed has learned that both of those serve as defenses in battle but later leave him exhausted, achy, and generally miserable and make him vow to stay away from war after. Of course if Peter is going Ed knows the only place he belongs is at his brother's side and so these vows are never made seriously.
Hope is the newcomer to this mix but Ed understands why easily enough. For a month now, Peter, Oreius and himself have lead the Narnian Army in the Western Woods against a remnant of the Witch's army. The group, led by a hag and a werewolf, engaged the Narnians repeatedly but never long enough for superior numbers to crush the smaller force, not until today at least. They have the smaller army surrounded and this is the final battle standing between the Narnians and returning home, this brings a sort of hope to the camp, a waiting with breath held sort of anticipation of homecomings that mingles with the other emotions uncomfortably.
At least Edmund thinks so, he expressed this to Peter last night but his brother had chuckled and told him to think less and sleep more. Easy for Peter to say, sometime Ed wondered if his brother was fully guided by instinct alone and not thought, he asked Peter this but had gotten a pillow to the face for his troubles. He didn't return it, despite Peter's half hearted protests and once his brother was asleep he prayed to Aslan to keep them all safe and give them victory the next morning.
The prayer is still repeating in his mind now when he feels his helmet thumped. "If you think anymore you'll hurt yourself."
The gentle teasing brings a smirk to his face, "You're just jealous because I can."
A snort is his only reply until he feels mailed arms encircle him and pull him into a hug, to which Ed rolls his eyes knowing full well Peter is aware that he is despite not being able to see. Since his first encounter with the cold fevers over a year ago and the change in their relationship that followed, Peter tended to display his affection openly and often. Ed doesn't really mind; actually if he's honest he enjoys the attention but he rarely shows his enjoyment of it and usually calls Peter any sort of insult from oaf to lummox while trying to pull away. He doesn't now though if only because he knows both of them need this exchange before the coming battle, a little bit of comfort to hold them through the the fighting.
He pulls away from Peter after a minute. "It's time," he encourages him quietly. Peter places a kiss on the top of his head and Ed rolls his eyes but doesn't protest as Peter checks the straps of his armor and then tugs him to the tent's exit.
They are greeted by the troops on the other side, arrayed in front of them in formation. Oreius stands to Peter's left, Ed to his right as Peter addresses the soldiers, "Cousins, this past month you have demonstrated your loyalty time and again to My Royal Siblings and I, to your families, to our fair country, and to Aslan above all. For this I thank you with all my heart and Narnia does with me. Today there is a the chance to finish this fighting and we ask for your strength in doing so, not just for ourselves but so that when we leave, those living here can feel safe once more. And we will leave here, each to his or her own family and friends. If this appeals to you, fight today as bravely and honorably as you have this entire campaign and Aslan will surely give us victory!"
"For Aslan and for Narnia!" Ed smiles to himself as the cry rises from the camp. Peter doesn't give speeches often but when he does he gets to the heart of the matter and soldiers at least appreciate that. His brother is getting quite good at this inspiring the troops thing too, not that moral was low before. It does make Edmund wonder if any army in Earth's history has ever so loved a leader. The thought brings a pang of something, longing, fear, love, wondering, about Dad in France but he pushes those thoughts aside for now.
Instead he follows Peter to the head of the army. They aren't riding on horseback for this battle and Ed misses Phillip already. Unfortunately, the roots are too thick and trees too close together to make it effective, Oreius is displeased with the location since he will be unable to join his Kings in the fighting but it can't be helped. Instead he will lead his cavalry to the fields behind the enemy army and cut off their retreat.
Several hours later, Ed is engaged with a minotaur and a wolf. It isn't a situation he wanted to find himself in but he is now. The wolf circles him while the minotaur snorts and generally looks intimidating. Ed absently contemplates that a giant, hairy beast with an axe that can probably separate his left side from his right in spite of his armor is a decently terrifying prospect. However it's less so when Ed feels the wolf behind him tense and launch himself at Ed who ducks and lets the wolf collide into the minotaur. Finishing the two is is much easier when they are distracted with trying to seperate.
He pauses to do a quick survey, a necessary break from the action; he checks his position first, getting too far in front is dangerous but on that he's safe. He also checks for Peter and Malik, a cheetah he's rather fond of with. He sees pale orange not far from him and after identifying a distinct cluster of spots, is satisfied on one account. He doesn't see his brother but dwelling on that isn't an option.
A black dwarf arrives with a nasty looking hammer that he swings at Ed who hops back and arcs his sword down, which is blocked. They engage in several more exchanges with neither gaining anything. The hammer lands weakly on his shield arm at one point, enough to hurt but not to break the bone, and he draws blood from the dwarf's leg.
It might have gone on longer except that while battling, a flash of gold catches Ed's vision and he spots Peter charging after a werewolf. The dwarf he's fighting seizes on his lapse in attention and swings the hammer intending to crush Ed's chest. He avoids it narrowly and the momentum of the swing leaves the dwarf exposed. Ed takes the opportunity and finishes the fight.
Looking back out he tries desperately to find his brother again and does, but to his dismay Peter is still chasing the werewolf and getting further and further from the army. Ed breaks into a run after them. It isn't smart; he knows he should get help but everyone near him is engaged and if he doesn't go now, he'll lose Peter in the thickets. He has to dodge around only a few skirmishes but he has been fighting near the flank so getting out of the melee isn't hard.
What is hard is keeping track of his brother as the trees thicken. The site they choose for battle had been the thinnest part of the forest. Ed had understood logically why they had to choose that site but now he experiences first hand how difficult seeing, much less fighting, is among the thicker parts. Still he doggedly pursues the sounds of branches breaking and leaves crunching ahead of him. A few times he even sees the golden emblem on Peter's mail.
He stops hearing footsteps and starts hearing a fight ahead of him. He can recognize Peter's grunts and the sounds of metal against metal. That isn't right, werewolves don't use armor or swords so he shouldn't be hearing those noises. He slows down as the sounds get louder since rushing in unprepared is more dangerous to both of them than it is helpful to Peter. He moves more carefully, avoiding making noise and finds a small clearing, no more than a few meters by a few meters. Four figures, Peter and the werewolf plus a black dwarf and a wolf are engaged in a less than fair fight.
The werewolf, with its tall, gangly form, looms over Peter slashing at him with claws, the wolf circles around him and Peter kicks out several times to ward off attacks. The dwarf is the worst, waiting until Peter's attention is split between the other two to lunge with a sword and it's the connecting of this on his brother's shield that helped Edmund to find them.
Surveying the situation rapidly, Ed chooses his course of action carefully. Peter's back is to him and that means his brother will either be distracted by his appearance or attack him before knowing who it is. The best way around this would be to circle and come out behind the werewolf but that will take too long. The dwarf is the biggest problem, he can see the scratches where blade has damaged Peter's armor and decides the first order of business is to deal with him.
He slides a knife he keeps in his boot out and takes careful aim. He isn't very good at throwing it but he practiced with Lucy several times, usually in secret since neither Su nor Peter wanted her near the battlefield. Ed agreed with them but he didn't think for a minute that not teaching Lucy how to defend herself was a good idea. As often as his siblings teased and worried about him for getting into trouble, Lucy had a knack for finding it too and Ed wanted her prepared when she does.
He slows his breathing and waits for a clear target. When it presents itself seconds later, Ed is ready and the knife sails through the air. A hideous shriek rewards him as the knife finds its target. It also gives him an opening to charge the wolf with his sword. He isn't fast enough for a decisive blow and the situation devolves into a messy fight of Ed trying to protect Peter's back from the wolf and the werewolf attacking Peter more aggressively now that odds have been evened.
The turning point reminds Ed why Fell Creatures are so reviled. The werewolf, frustrated with the lack of progress, uses the dwarf's body and a weapon and swings it at Peter and Ed wildly while the wolf waits for one of them to either trip over a root or be knocked down by the improvised club. The movements are wild and dangerous but Ed picks up on a pattern quickly. His sword is already on the way to deliver a killing blow against the savage creature who would use his comrade's body as a weapon when said body connects with Peter's head. The blade is driven into him a second later but by then Ed knows he needs to deal with the wolf who has already pounced on his brother.
Removing his sword from the dead werewolf, he swings it at the wolf and draws blood but he knows it isn't lethal. Curiously, it does drive the wolf off and Ed fears he's too late. He drops to his knees, careful to keep his sword ready incase the wolf returns, and find Peter alive, but confused. Understanding why is easy, the large dent in his helmet and blood dripping down his forehead is explanation enough.
The gravity of the situation comes seconds later, Ed is alone in a forest, with an injured Peter. He's found that during the melee, he's lost track of where he came from and therefore doesn't know how to leave. Worse, there is a chance that the wolf that escaped is on it's way to get help and Ed doesn't like his chances against whatever help it may bring.
After collecting his knife and Rhindon, he half drags, half walks with Peter to an area further away. His brother is dazed and asks him repeatedly where they are, why aren't the girls with them, why does his head hurt, and all manners of other questions that Ed patiently answers over and over. He thinks they should probably be more quiet but this is keeping Peter awake and he knows his brother shouldn't sleep with a head wound.
Eventually he finds a cave, not deep, but shelter enough that Ed feels as secure as he can in given the situation. It's just in time too, Peter and their armors are heavy and he's exhausted. He settles Peter and goes about removing his brother's helmet, and inspecting the wound, he also checks the rest of his brother and finds a number of other wounds. He uses his knife to cut a bandage from his tunic and wraps Peter's head. He should clean it but he doesn't have water and stopping the bleeding now is important. He bandages a few of the others but he doesn't have enough tunic to keep cutting up. It's nearly night and thankfully, it's late enough in Spring that the cold won't be a problem so he doesn't have to build a fire and potentially attract attention.
He steels himself to stay awake to wake Peter up and ask him questions. He isn't sure why he needs to, but remembers it from England and that it's important when head wounds are involved. He sits next to his brother and lets him lean his head on his shoulder. It can't be comfortable since both are still wearing most of their armor but Peter doesn't seem to mind and happily complies when Ed tells him to sleep.
It's a long night, something Ed thought he was prepared for and apparently isn't. He wakes Peter up as regularly as he can but he isn't very good at telling the time at night. He thinks he does it well enough since his brother answers the questions alright but Ed wishes he took more comfort from that than he does. Every movement in the darkness has him tense and clench his sword tighter. He's completely blind in the darkness compared to a wolf and if anything is hunting for them, they're easy prey.
He spends most of his time not tensing or waking Peter praying to Aslan. Please keep us hidden from our enemies, please help us to be found by friends, please heal Peter and protect us. Dozens of things that cross his mind end up being voiced in prayer. He isn't sure how coherent it is but he trusts the Lion to sort it out as He always does.