Narnia: The Chronicles of the Lioness

Chapter 25

By: Lady Aescwyn

The Chronicles of the Lioness

"What are they doing?!" screams Susan in alarm.

Peter's hand goes to his sword and I go down on all fours in front of Lucy, snarling savagely.

"No!" cries Mrs. Beaver as Mr. Beaver steps forward.

The war party reaches us and swiftly surrounds our small group.

Peter's sword is drawn.

Susan has an arrow on the string.

Lucy's small dagger is out.

I arch my back like a house cat and growl a warning; we are ready to fight should it come to that.

A female centaur with a midnight black horse's body and hair holds the tip of a huge broadsword against Mr. Beaver's neck. Her skin is very tanned and she has several silver rings through her ears. Her hair is up in an arranged tangle of braids at the back of her head with tails that cascade down her back.

She speaks, "You, Beaver! What are these beings you bring to Aslan's camp?"

Mr. Beaver sighs, "That's what I've been tryin' to tell ya! These are the children of Adam and Eve! Humans! And the Lioness has come with them from the lands beyond the Lantern Waste!"

The centaur woman's mouth drops open and she, trembling, sheathes her sword. The leopard in front of me sits down rather ungracefully. The hounds all yelp in surprise and leap backwards. The four other centaurs back off quickly.

The unicorn steps forward and bows his beautiful head. From a distance he looked white, but now as I see him up close, he has gold spiraling through his horn and hooves. His mane and tail are graced with white, red, and gold hair.

"Please forgive us, your Majesties, my Lady. We were ignorant to your identity. We merely wished to defend the camp." He says.

Only now does my group stand down; weapons are sheathed and I revert back to my normal form (drawing gasps from the Narnians).

"It's alright, I understand, um, we've just come to speak to Aslan." says Peter.

The unicorn bows his head again, "My name is Blaize, and if you would allow it my King, it would be my honor to escort you to the camp."

"That would be wonderful!" cries Lucy.

Blaize beams with pride.

The female centaur, now recovered from her shock, places her hand over her heart and lowers her head, "It has been an honor and a pleasure your Majesties, my Lady. And thank you for coming." She signals to the others and they are gone as quickly as they came, leaving me and the others with Blaize.

"Come, the camp is this way." says Blaize, but then he takes a closer look at our weary faces, "Would the ladies wish to ride?"

Lucy's eyes widen, Susan says, "Oh no! We couldn't!"

"Not on you! You're too...too...too..." falters Lucy.

"Noble." I whisper.

Blaize cracks up in a rather horsey laugh, "It will be no problem, in fact, it will be an honor." he says, kneeling.

Susan mounts clumsily as Peter and I help Lucy up. I step back.

"Not you my Lady?" asks Blaize.

"Wouldn't I be too much?" I ask.

Blaize laughs again, "Not at all, my lady; I am no common horse. Mount if you wish."

I sigh, "It would feel good to get off my feet." I say.

Peter takes my hand gently and helps me up.

On the ride, the Beavers, Peter, and Blaize discuss the army, Narnia, and Aslan.

For me, most of it goes in one ear and out the other; now off my feet, I realize how tired I am and I immediately fall into a dazed stupor.

I do notice when Blaize starts up a hill. Then, as he crests the hill, I come fully awake as I stare at the sight in front of me; before us is spread a deep ravine, all full of red and gold tents. Beyond that are several hills and shining in the distance is a ribbon of silver.

The sea...

Blaize continues down the hill and halts at the edge of the camp, "I regret to announce; this is where I must leave you. You will find the tent of Aslan if you keep going straight. Farewell."

Peter lifts Lucy from Blaize's back and Susan slides off.

I lift a leg over Blaize's back and prepare to slide off, but suddenly the ground seems so far away...

Peter catches my waist as I fall. I land on unsteady feet and I have to grab Peter's arm to keep from falling all the way into the soft grass.

"Lizzie? Are you alright?" asks Peter, concerned.

"Yes, just a little..." I look up into Peter's eyes and feel a sudden warmth as my face flushes, "...unsteady." I breathe.

He smiles and nods, "It's been a long day."

"And it's not over yet." I say.

Blaize is gone. The Beaver's turn to us, "Well, let's go." says Mr. Beaver.

"This is it." whispers Susan.

End of Chapter 25

Yay! We're about to meet Aslan! Thanks for reading and please review!

nascar-freak: Wow... you have no idea what it means to me to have someone say that... You just made my day! Thank you!

musafa: lol, Thank you! I can't wait either. :)

StarsOfMystery: Lol, I think you'll find that I love writing cliffies... Thank you, I love this story too!

DragonObsessed: Like I've said before, I'm a cliffie addict... Thank you and here is your update!

Good Girl'z Dead: Well, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for my reviewers; I'm still writing this story because of you guys. I respect and love you all (not in a freaky way, lol). Yes, as you can see some questions have started being answered, but unfortunately I think there will only be more questions before I can give you all the answers! And as far as the eagles go, I made that comment at the end for people who are as oblivious as I can be sometimes. :P Thanks again!!