The Last Queen
Disclaimer: I don't own.
Chapter 5: Aslan's How
When they rose from their prayers, Lucy said, "We need to get on the move to this stronghold. I feel that is where the Lion wants us."
"Very well, your Majesty. Nikabrick, Trumpkin, and I will mobilize the troops." The faithful Badger hauled the two dwarves out of the tent with him.
"Have you any further suggestions for our strategy, Queen Lucy?" Glenstorm respectfully asked.
"Actually, yes. But they can wait for this fortress of yours, General." She smiled brightly.
"As you wish, my lady." The Centaur bowed and exited the tent.
"You know strategy, Queen Lucy?" Doctor Cornelius asked.
"I studied it under the best military minds of the Golden Age, including General Oreius," she replied.
"Truly, your Majesty? Why, he was the one of the greatest tacticians in Narnian history!"
"Indeed. My sister, though, rivaled him."
"The Queen Susan planned battles?"
"She preferred the planning of them to the fighting of them." She winked. "So she made the plans, and I executed them."
"I see."
"Oh, but don't worry. I do have a few tricks up my sleeve." Lucy rose and exited the tent. She breathed deeply of the pure Narnian air. "It's so wonderful to be back," she murmured.
"Are-are you Queen Lucy?" a young voice beside her asked.
She turned to see a Centaur colt. "Indeed I am. And who might you be?"
He blushed. "I-I'm Lightning Bolt, your Majesty."
"Pleasure to meet you, Lightning Bolt." She smiled.
He giggled. "And you, your Majesty."
"Call me Lucy."
"Lucy, then."
"Lightning Bolt!" someone called from a distance.
"That's my dam. I guess I have to go." He turned and cantered away.
Lucy chuckled once he was gone.
"I see you've met Lightning Bolt," Caspian said as he left the tent behind her.
"Yes," she said, turning to face him. Her voice grew wistful. "It seems some things never change."
"Lucy?"
"Oh." She laughed, a little embarrassed. "In our time, the younger males, no matter what species they were, always seemed to gravitate toward Peter. I suppose they looked up to him a great deal. The females tended to be near Susan. The older males were likely to be found somewhere around Edmund. That one I don't know if I ever figured out the reasoning, unless it was because they were all some of the wisest people in Narnia." She grinned at him. "That meant that I got the children. Since I was eight when we were crowned, the rationale for that was easy to determine."
"I see," was his only response.
"Is something wrong?"
He shook his head. "No; I'm just amazed at your vocabulary."
She laughed. "I am 1300 years older than you, by Narnian standards."
He cocked his head. "Well, I suppose that's true…"
"By mental standards, however, I'm twenty-four."
"Really? All that knowledge and experience trapped in a nine-year-old's body."
"Don't I know it."
"Excuse me." He moved to go help with the packing up of the army. With a sigh, she did the same.
*L*Q*
They stopped upon arriving at this fortress. Glenstorm broke the silence by explaining, "It's been abandoned for hundreds of years. Only the Mice knew of its existence."
"Of course. The faithful Mice," Lucy murmured.
"It may not be what you are used to, but it is defensible," Caspian added.
"I'm sure it will be fine."
The two approached the entrance. A group of Centaurs lined up on either side of the slope leading down into the How. They drew their swords and held them high in salute, forming a pathway for Lucy and Caspian to walk down. Lucy smiled and began to descend. Caspian hesitated for a few minutes before following. Lucy gave a grin and wink to Lightning Bolt, whose sword dipped slightly lower than the others'. Once she was inside, she glanced around at the soldiers setting up camp. "I've lived in worse army encampments," she observed.
She noticed a hall leading off from this room and went over to it. Caspian followed her with a torch. She froze upon seeing the paintings of herself, with a few including her siblings as well. "It's us," she breathed, tracing her fingers over the depiction of their coronation. She covered her mouth and began to sob, sinking to her knees and leaning against the wall. "Peter! Susan! Edmund!" she wailed, weeping. Caspian knelt down beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.
Several minutes later, her tears subsided, and she looked up at Caspian. "I'm sorry," she whispered.
"Don't be." He gave her a small, sad smile. "I, too, know what loosing loved ones feels like."
She nodded, slowly standing to her feet again. "Wh-what is this place?" she asked softly.
"You don't know?" Upon receiving her confirmation that she didn't, he began to lead her deeper into the heart of the fortress. They arrived in a large, open room, and he used his torch to light the area for fire that ran the length of the wall. It illuminated the carvings, some of the Pevensies, some of events further back in Narnian history, the main one a large portrayal of Aslan. Lucy's eyes finally focused on the centerpiece of the room, a familiar Table, cracked in two. Slowly, reverently, she started forward. She placed her hand on the Stone Table, memories of a long ago night filling her mind. "He must know what He's doing," she breathed, bittersweetly remembering Susan's words after His sacrifice. She nodded slowly. "We need to get to work, Caspian."
A/N: I am so sorry that this update has taken so long, but I got on a Star Wars kick, so I've been writing mostly stuff for that, but I made myself sit down and finish this.