Lucy awoke and looked around. She was in a cave, a cave that she didn't know. She sat up and then grabbed her head. She looked at her hand and saw that it was covered in blood that was drying. What had happened? She searched her thoughts. She couldn't remember.
Now she was starting to panic. She searched her thoughts and there was nothing there at all. Only her fear and confusion. She crawled out of the cave and fell at the edge of the river. She looked at her reflection and she didn't recognize the frightened girl staring back at her. She sat back and cried. She didn't know what to do or where to go. She felt lost. Her head started to spin. How much blood had she lost?
xxxxx
Miralen was watchful as she walked. She knew that she was farther away from her village than she was supposed to be, but she needed to find more mushrooms for her stew and she had followed them along the river to where she was now. With the remnants of the Witch's army about, food was getting scarce. It was all she could do to find enough food to feed her family. She had a husband and an eight year old daughter to feed and provide for. Things had gotten a little better since the Witch had been overthrown, but not much. At least it wasn't winter all the time, and they didn't have to hide anymore. Her great-grandparents had left their home and hidden their heirlooms and packed up only the necessities to move to Archenland. After the Witch had been defeated seven years ago, Miralen, her husband Gerald, and their daughter Faylen, had moved back into their family home and found the few treasures that their ancestors had meant to pass down to them. There were not many pockets of the Witch's army left, but there was one only 3 miles from her home. They ate more than one would think possible and no one felt safe. Everyone was afraid of being attacked by… She stopped dead in her tracks.
Right in front of her there was a girl lying by the river, bleeding. Miralen rushed to her side. She felt for a pulse. Thank Aslan she was still alive. Miralen ripped the edge of her dress and wrapped the girl's ankle and head. She was nearly two miles from her home and knew that she couldn't carry the girl all the way back, not without hurting her further. She pulled the girl away from the river and put her into a nearby cave out of sight. She rushed home to get her horse and buggy then took her home and dressed her wounds more properly.
xxxxx
Four years later, Miralen was weeding the garden with Rayla, the girl she had found by the river. Rayla didn't remember anything about before Miralen found her, but she had become a part of the family. Faylen looked up to her and was glad to have an older sister. Though her lack of memory bothered her at times, Rayla had become content in her new life. They discovered not long after they found her that the remnant was gone. Since then, things had gone better for them in their little village of Aldeia.
"The plants look good this year," Rayla said. "We should get a good harvest."
"You are wonderful with plants. They never looked better than when you started caring for them. You are a natural," Miralen said. She smiled as she looked at her.
"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" Rayla asked.
"Oh, nothing. I am just thinking about the beautiful young woman that you have become."
"Well, thank you. I could not have done it without you."
"Rayla, Rayla!" Faylen called.
"What is it, Faylen?" Rayla replied.
"Akila had her kittens! Come see!" Faylen pulled Rayla to the small barn behind the house. There were five kittens in all. They were so tiny and helpless. Rayla loved them all.
"Have you given them names?" Rayla asked.
"I was thinking about it. I want to name this one Helen after the first queen of Narnia and this one Frank. This one I would like to name after the brave King Gale."
"You like royal names, do you?"
"Yes, I always admired the Kings and Queens of Narnia. They are all brave and beautiful. I love the stories of them."
"Indeed, you do. What names for the other two?"
"This one, I would like to name after the Lady Polly who entered into Narnia on the day of its creation."
"And for the last one?"
Faylen looked up at her. "I would name her for the lost Queen Lucy."
Rayla looked at her thoughtfully. "It is a good name."
They heard a loud noise from the house and a scream. Rayla looked at Faylen.
"Faylen, stay here. Climb up onto the loft and hide there."
"But, Rayla."
"No, buts. Stay here. Promise me," Rayla said holding Faylen by the shoulders and looking her in the eye.
Faylen nodded, scared, and climbed the ladder into the loft. Rayla helped her lift the ladder up so that no one could follow her up. Rayla looked around the barn door and saw bandits robbing her house. They rode off leaving the house on fire. Rayla ran towards the house.
"Miralen!" she called. She ran into the house, looking for Miralen and Gerald. She coughed on the smoke. She searched frantically until she found them lying unconscious in the bedroom. She hooked her arms under Miralen's and dragged her out first and then went back in to get Gerald. After they were both out, she checked to make sure they were still alive. They were. She ran to the barn.
"Rayla, what has happened?" Faylen asked from her hiding spot in the loft.
"We have been robbed and they set the house on fire. I need to take the horse and go get the doctor."
"Why? Are Mother and Father alright?"
"They were inside and are unconscious. Do not worry. I will be back soon."
"What about the house?" Faylen asked.
"It is too late for the house."
Faylen teared as she climbed down. She walked outside as Rayla lead the horse out. She looked as her home burned.
"Do not go near the house, alright? Stay with your parents," Rayla said. She mounted the horse and road off at a gallop towards Dr. Tanson's house. She looked over her shoulder to see Faylen kneeling down by her parents. She had to get to the doctor's house soon. After all they had done for her, she could never repay them.
She pulled up on the reigns as she neared the house. The door had been broken in. She jumped off the horse and ran inside. The small house had been ransacked and robbed. She searched the house quickly and found that Dr. Tanson was not there. She was grateful that he had not been harmed, but she needed to find him quickly to save Miralen and Gerald. She heard a noise from behind and gasped as she turned around.
"Dr. Tanson, you startled me," she said and rushed to him.
"Rayla, what happened here?" He looked around the small house in shock.
"It was like this when I arrived. They attacked my home as well. Miralen and Gerald are gravely injured and I came here for your aid. Please, will you not come with me?"
"Of course. I will gather my supplies quickly and meet you out side." He rushed around the room picking up as many of the supplies that he needed as he could. He then mounted his horse which was still saddled outside and followed Rayla back to her house. He quickly tended to their wounds while Rayla took Faylen aside and comforted her.
"Are they going to be okay, Rayla?" Faylen asked, resting her head against Rayla's shoulder as they sat underneath the big oak tree.
"I do not know, Faylen, but we must have faith." Rayla wrapped her arm around Faylen and hugged her.
"What do we do? What if they come back? What if they attack our friends too? They have to be stopped." Faylen buried her face in Rayla's shoulder.
"Don't worry about the what ifs. You let me worry about it, alright?" Rayla said.
Dr Tanson walked over to them. Rayla looked up at him.
"How are they, doctor," Rayla asked.
"Can I speak to you alone, Rayla?" he asked.
"Sure." She got up and followed him out of hearing distance from Faylen.
"I'm not going to lie to you. They aren't going to make it. Gerald is already gone and Miralen will follow within the hour."
Rayla sobbed as quietly as she could.
"I am sorry, Rayla. I will help you bury them. I would let you stay at my house, but it is in shambles.
"Thank you. We will manage," Rayla said.
"Where will you go?" he asked.
"To the Johansens' place. They are old family friends of Miralen and live not far away from here."
"Have a safe journey. Be careful, the raiders might still be out there."
"We will."
They buried Miralen and Gerald, then Faylen and Rayla said a few words of good bye.
"Come on, Faylen. We best go now." Rayla lead Faylen away and placed her on the saddle behind her. They set off for the Johansens' at a quick pace. Rayla felt the back of her shirt get wet. She looked back to see Faylen quietly crying. She wished she could offer some words of comfort, but what could she say? The girl had lost her home and parents all in one day. So she said nothing and let Faylen cry. She saw the Johansen place ahead and urged the horse to a quicker pace. The Johansens lived in a cabin not unlike the cabin where Rayla lived, except this one was bigger because the Johansens had seven children, four sons and three daughters. They were farmers and so they had a lot of land and all of the children helped out. They were all very kind.
Rayla had been thinking on the whole ride over about what to do. She had finally come to a decision, but she knew that Faylen would not like it.
They reached the house. The eldest son, Raden, was out front chopping wood. He was sixteen years old.
"Good afternoon, Rayla, what brings you out our way?" He asked, swinging his ax to stick in the stump. As Rayla dismounted, he realized that something was wrong by their expressions. "What has happened?" he asked.
"I will tell you inside, are your parents inside?" Rayla asked.
"Yes, Mother is. I'm sorry. Come on in." He led them inside the cabin. Mrs. Johansen was sitting by the fire mending clothes. She looked up.
"Rayla, what's the matter?" She asked. She got up and came over to them.
"The house was attacked by raiders today," Rayla started out.
"Was anyone hurt?" Mrs. Johansen asked, concerned.
"Miralen and Gerald were in the house and were killed. Faylen and I were out in the barn. Dr. Tanson helped us bury them. Our house was burned down."
"Oh!" She exclaimed. "I am so sorry to hear that. You must stay here of course," she offered without hesitation.
"Thank you for your hospitality. It will just be Faylen staying though," Rayla said.
"What?" Faylen asked in surprise. "You aren't staying?"
"No," Rayla said. "I cannot. Something must be done about these raids. I heard about similar attacks not far from here last week. I think that there are too many for the local authorities to handle. I must go to Cair Paravel and ask for aid from the kings and queen. Dr. Tanson's house was attacked as well. You should prepare yourselves. I would hate for anything to happen to you."
"Of course. Thank you for the warning. If you must go, then I wish you safe travels. You must at least stay the night, but are you sure? Cair Paravel is far away. It is at least a three day ride there. And how can you be sure that they will help. They have a whole country to rule. They can't send out troops for everything."
"Then I must convince them to help us. I must, before more people are attacked. It is three days away, and in order to get aid before more people are killed, I must be off at once. I cannot afford to waste any time. I am a good rider. I will make good time."
"At least let me make you a pack and send some money with you," Mrs. Johansen said insistently.
"I am already imposing enough as it is."
"No, I insist. You must have something to eat on the road."
"You are right. Thank you. You are very kind."
Mrs. Johansen hurried around the kitchen and gathered supplies.
"Please don't go, Rayla," Faylen pleaded. "I need you here, with me."
"I know, and I want to be with you to. But if my going can save some people from being attacked as well, do you not think that I should go. If I did not think that I must, I would not leave you, not now, but I must. I will miss you, but I will be back soon. I promise. I will hurry."
She hugged Faylen tightly. "You promise?" Faylen asked.
"I promise. Always remember that Aslan knows what he is doing. He will protect me."
"Here you are," Mrs. Johansen said. She handed Rayla a saddle bag filled with bread, cheese, and a couple water skins along with a few coins and a change of clothes including a hooded cloak.
"I cannot thank you enough," Rayla said. She gave Mrs. Johansen a hug. "I will not forget this."
She gave Faylen one last hug and headed out. She prepared herself for the long journey and mounted her horse. She wanted to get as far as she could today while there was still daylight to see. She had to be careful, though, that she would not meet the raiders along the way. She kept to the main roads as often as possible, hoping that the raiders would be more sneaky and try to take back ways as not to get caught by the authorities. She kept looking over her shoulder fearful of see them pursuing her from behind. She decided to take a shortcut by following the river to the next town. She only road for a few hours before the sun started to set. She knew that it would be dark soon. She saw a cave to her right and decided to stay the night inside. She looked around. In the dim light she almost didn't recognize the place. Miralen had brought her here a couple times. It had been right by this river in this spot that Miralen had found her four years ago.
She tried not to think about her past too much most of the time. It only made her sad. At first she thought about her past a lot. She tried to remember, but she couldn't. She didn't recognize the area at all. She wondered if she was even from around here. She didn't think that she was from anywhere very near, because no one knew who she was. Had she been on a trip? What was on her mind even more was wondering if anyone was looking for her. Was there anyone that had missed her when she was gone? Had they looked for her? Or was there no one to look for her? Perhaps she had been an orphan who was looking for a place to stay or for work. If she thought about it too much, she would cease to live, so she pushed back those thoughts anytime they started to creep into her mind.
But right now, she couldn't seem to push them back. She wondered. She wondered if she would ever know the answer. She was beginning to doubt it. It had already been four years. She was eighteen now. It was time to move on. She had moved on, until her new home went up in flames and her new life was threatened. She sobbed as she thought of Miralen and Gerald. They had been like parents to her and more than that, they had been friends. She hid her horse in the forest, unrolled the bed roll that Mrs. Johansen had sent and tried to sleep. It took her nearly an hour, but she finally drifted off into a fitful sleep.