My thanks to Witchy Pixie for the edits. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, or anyone except for Alexa, my OC.
~Rising Above~
Chapter Eight – Revelation
The Witch's troops came in sight over the horizon. Her army soon stretched across the expanse of the field, and I couldn't help thinking the griffin was right. Their numbers were indeed far greater than ours.
A Minotaur raised his axe and uttered a guttural roar that sent the White Witch's followers into position. I shifted my gaze when the Witch herself came in a chariot pulled by white polar bears. I narrowed my eyes in concentration when I spotted something the Witch had around her neck, sowed into her dress. It was long fur, sandy in color. 'What is that?' I thought. My eyes widened in shock.'It…it's Aslan's mane. My God…' I looked down at Peter, who wore a look of sheer determination as he spoke to Orieus.
I couldn't tell what was said between the two, but Peter eventually unsheathed his sword in ready. The Narnian horns blew, signaling that they were ready for battle. The sounds of unsheathing metal rang through the air as Narnians cheered and shouted for victory, myself and Edmund included.
The Witch's troops uttered mighty roars of their own and rushed forward in attack. Jadis simply stood back, her cold, calculating gaze roaming over the chaos.
Peter sent the signal for the griffins to fly overhead, dropping their large boulders over the enemy. Some were too late in realizing the danger, but a few of the enemy took out their bows and arrows, successfully shooting some of the griffin army from the sky.
As the griffins retreated, I tensed with baited breath, in wait for Peter's signal.
"FOR NARNIA AND FOR ASLAN!" With those words the army below charged toward the enemy at an astonishing pace. Aslan, please be with us.
Time seemed slow to a crawl as the two armies approached each other. In the back of my mind I could hear the distant, but fierce battle cries of the Narnians, the loud drum beating of hooves, and my own heart beat steadily racing in my chest.
And then the clash began, breaking the war out into full force.
"Ready?" I asked Edmund. The archers stood behind us, poised and waiting for the signal. He nodded, and prepared a deep breath.
"Fire!"
A blood red arrow flew past us, and turned into a crimson phoenix before bursting into flames.
I watched below as Peter and the rest of the Narnians pulled back, out of the path of the phoenix as it created a great wall of flame, burning any enemies that fell in its way. The Narnians cheered as the Witch surveyed the barrier with disdain.
My satisfied smile faltered, however, when Jadis's ice wand extinguished the flames, and tore through the now ineffective smoking barrier. 'No good,' I thought with a frown.
"Fall back! Draw them to the rocks!" Peter commanded. Along with Orieus, the army doubled back toward the rocks that lied in front of the steep cliff where Edmund and I stood several feet above.
Edmund signaled the archers, who shot a multitude of arrows across the sky. I watched the projectiles fly overhead, and bit my lip as enemies—along with some Narnians who couldn't escape fast enough—were pierced below.
It was then that I realized that war was a bloody, untamable thing that devastated everything in its path.
"No," I heard Edmund whisper, fiercely under his breath as he watched the ground below.
"What?" I asked. "What happened?"
"Peter!" He pointed to the ground below, where Peter lay sprawled on the ground, seemingly in a pained daze. I gasped, realizing that enemy ranks were closing in on him.
"We have to help him," Edmund said, his eyes bright with fear and determination.
"Look!" I saw Orieus gallop past Peter, swords drawn, in the direction of the Witch. But I agreed with Edmund that his brother needed help if he was hurt.
"Let's go."
We hurried down the side of the cliff, where it eased down in a sloping hill to the ground below, but from our vantage point I could still see Orieus.
The centaur never paused in his charge, though a minotaur tried in vain to grab onto him. Orieus reached back and stabbed the creature, using both swords. Having used his two weapons, Orieus took out one of the longest, and biggest swords I had ever seen. He was going to try and take the Witch's head off.
I muttered a curse under my breath as the initial attack missed. He swung around and blocked her sword as it came down, but forgot her wand as she froze him to stone. My eyes stung with tears as my eyes widened.
"Alexa, look out!"
I gasped as a scythe nearly grazed my neck. I ducked on instinct, falling on my bottom as a result. But I rolled out of the way in time for Edmund to graze the minotaur's side. But the creature's strength was pushing him back, beginning to overpower him. Once I rolled to my feet and unsheathed my swords, however, I hesitated, out of fear. A moment ago, I could've been bleeding out on the ground.
And it was then that I noticed the bodies of Narnians and fell beasts alike that littered the ground around us.
"Alexa! A little help!" Edmund called, but I was petrified, transfixed by the death around us. Is this what my father saw, every day?
"Whoa!" My gaze snapped to Edmund, who slipped on a faun's body and fell onto his back, the minotaur's scythe poised above him.
"No!" I shouted, and moved quicker than I thought myself capable. I didn't see Edmund's eyes widened with the fear of death, but I heard the bestial scream of an animal in the throes of pain. I tried to put my full weight on each hilt, grimacing as steel sunk farther into flesh, but I pulled them out and did it over again, heaving with the effort of it, until the creature sank to its knees. Edmund scrambled out of the way of its fall, and kept me from falling with it.
"You okay?" he asked, but at the moment I couldn't quite answer. All I could see was the death in front of me, that I had caused.
Seeing what was probably a blank, dazed look on my face, Edmund made sure I wouldn't fall before going to retrieve the swords from the minotaur's body. He did the job of cleaning both blades quickly before handing them back to me.
"Edmund!" He turned at his brother's shout. "Pete?"
Peter looked worse for wear without his helmet and a bruise already forming on his chin, but he still had his sword.
"You both all right?" he asked his brother, then glanced at my unfocused face. "Alexa?"
He grabbed my arm gently, calling my name again. When I eventually focused on his face, I was able to answer, "Y-Yes. I'm fine."
"Come on, then." He turned to his brother, who'd just finished grappling with a ghoul, and ushered me towards him. "Edmund, get out of here! Get the girls, and get them home!"
Edmund looked to his brother in surprise. I gave him an incredulous look as well. As terrified as I had been a moment ago, the last thing I wanted to do was leave. Even if Edmund had to drag me all the way back to the Lamppost.
"Alexa, you go with him too!" I gave him a hard look.
"What makes you think we're leaving you by yourself?"
"It's too dangerous, and I'm not going to see you two getting hurt," Peter said, but he was cut off short as an ogre approached. Peter met the challenge head on, leaving Edmund and I.
"Peter—" Edmund began to protest, but his brother spoke clearly and commandingly.
"No, go! Take Alexa with you!" Peter said before jumping back into the fray of battle. Edmund sighed, and signaled for me to follow him. Reluctantly, I obliged. He waiting until I was starting up the slope leading out of the battlefield before he followed, protecting my back.
"Where should we go?" I asked, but I didn't get an answer.
I looked back to see that Edmund was no longer behind me, and was looking intensely at the White Witch. She was heading straight for Peter. Before I could stop him, he took off running full speed towards her.
"Edmund!" I yelled, and sprinted after him as fast as I could. I was detained by a boggle, who slashed at me with elongated claws. I struggled to quickly gain the upper hand, but finally I was able to dispatch the creature. After a moment to swallow the bile rising in my throat, I began following Edmund again.
I saw him battling the Witch, and from the corner of my eye, Peter trying to get through to help his brother. It was to no avail. My heart raced as I saw Edmund destroy Jadis's wand, sparks of blue flying in every direction. I sprinted as fast as my legs could carry me. Almost there, I'm going to make it! I panted, willing myself to move. But I was…too late. I heard Edmund choke back a cry, as jagged ice stabbed through his stomach.
"EDMUND!"Peter's yell rang out through the battle field. I was frozen in my spot in front of the Witch…and Edmund who lay on the ground gasping for breath.
Jadis smirked, and took a step forward. My eyes widened in fear, though I still couldn't manage to make myself move away, or unsheathe my swords.
"A Daughter of Eve. How truly disgusting," she sneered, stepping around her fallen victim.
"Alexa…move," Edmund wheezed from his position on the ground. My eyes lowered to him for a brief moment, before looking back up to the Witch, who raised her broken, now bloody wand.
"Hey." My eyes snapped to the familiar figure behind Jadis, who delivered a blow aimed for her head. Unfortunately, she spun on her heels, and deflected with her sword. Peter and the White Witch engaged furiously into their battle.
I quickly knelt down next to Edmund and unclipped his helmet. His breath was coming out in ragged gasps, and when I felt his pulse, I felt it slowly falling.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, I couldn't…" I said, not knowing what else I could do to help him. I sighed, wiping my eyes, and held his hand. "Just try to breathe…"
I looked over worriedly to Peter, who was struggling. He put everything he had into his hits, but Jadis simply threw them off to the side. She forced him back, and I gasped in fright as she nearly took his head off with a cross of her swords. Peter leaned back as far as he could without toppling over, and quickly parried a stab. He lost his balance, however, when the Witch was able to hook the tip of her sword behind his leg. It was similar to the move he pulled on me during training, I realized.
"Alexa, go…help him," Edmund said weakly. I only hesitated for a moment. I laid a gentle hand on his shoulder before taking off ahead.
But again, I was too slow.
Jadis had him pinned to the ground, and was about to serve the final blow.
No! I gasped when the very earth shook as a mighty roar sounded, cutting through the entire field. I stopped dead in my tracks.
"Impossible," I was close enough to hear the Witch whisper. The great Lion himself ran toward us, and before she could move an inch, he pounced. I looked away, as the White Witch was finished off.
Instead, I ran to Peter and helped him up from the ground.
"Are you all right?" I asked with a frown, touching my hand gently to a gash on his forehead.
"Fine…are you?" he replied with a soft smile, grasping my hand with his. I blushed, but smiled at his use of my words.
"Somehow that worked better when I said it," I remarked. Before he could comment, Susan and Lucy approached us from behind.
"What happened to you two? I thought you were coming back in the morning!" I said as Susan hugged me, a grin spread across her face.
"I think you can figure it out. Where's Edmund?" she asked, a frown marring her features. My eyes widened in shock.
Edmund!
We ran to where he laid still on the grass. I couldn't hear him breathing.
Lucy immediately unscrewed her cordial, and shakily poured a drop into his mouth. It was the longest few seconds of my life, as I watched Edmund stop breathing entirely. Susan and Lucy held onto him as they cried, and the tears slipped down my own face anew as I looked to my hands in my lap. If only I had been quicker, if only I hadn't been so slow…
But I heard a gasp of breath. I snapped my head back up to see the color returning to Edmund's face. He started coughing, sucking in lost air. A wide smile spread across my face. I was surprised, however, when Peter dragged his little brother into a firm hug.
"When, for once, are you going to do as you're told?" Peter asked, laughing through his own tears. Edmund smiled, only laughing in response. I watched happily as his brother and sisters pulled him into a warm embrace, and only pulled away when Aslan made us aware of His presence.
"It is finished. But there is still work to be done," He said with a knowing smile as He glanced at Lucy. She smiled, and unscrewed her cordial.
*Boggles: "…are followers of the White Witch (LWW). According to A Guide to Narnia, 'boggle' is another name for a Hobgoblin. In the 2005 film, they are portrayed as troll-like imps with mole and swinish features." –excerpt from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
