Jaer

Rain poured down in a steady stream from the cloud-darkened sky. Though it was not yet dawn, many Animals, Dryads, Naiads, and other Magical Creatures were already awake and outside in the blessed downpour. For today was a holiday. After the wedding of Kanell and Xati the night before and the coming of the first rain in a month, the kings and queens had declared court adjourned so that all could celebrate and drink in the glorious moisture.

Which, of course, was why there was such a crowd in the King's Yard. For though all other lessons were cancelled, General Oreius declared that this day was a good day to practice fighting in adverse weather conditions. And if the kings were practicing, that meant Jaer and Jaerin were too. Not to mention the assorted onlookers gathered on the walls and beside them both to watch their kings and to enjoy the rain.

Jaer ducked a swordstroke and narrowly avoided falling in the muddy courtyard. Where once dying grass had been was now little more than a mud puddle. All four boys were coated from head to toe in the sticky substance though their instructors had so far managed to keep their upper bodies out of the muck. Not that it was that hard for the general, Jaer reflected, using a moment's respite to shove his dripping hair out of his eyes. He barely had flecks of mud on his belly, he was so tall. None spattered his polished breastplate.

He met the next stroke with his shield and sidestepped, looking for an opening, however small. Not a too obvious one, of course, for that would likely be a trap. But maybe the towering centaur would slip just a little…

Suddenly, Jaer realized that he was being boxed into a corner. A few more steps and he would be trapped. And so, he did exactly the opposite of what he was training for. He panicked. Swinging wildly at the centaur general, he tried to dart to the side. But Oreius stepped swiftly over, blocking him in. The general's massive sword swept down and Jaer blocked sloppily with his shield, deflecting the blow slightly but feeling the impact all down his arm and shoulder.

"Calm, Peridanson!" the general said as Jaer's next parry went astray as well. "Keep your head. Use your size. Breathe."

Jaer took a step back and forced himself to take a deep breath. Still wary, he managed to evade Oreius next attack with better grace, though he could feel the walls growing closer and the space in which he had to maneuver shrinking.

"Better. Now think! How can you extricate yourself?" Oreius stepped back a little and twirled his sword in one hand. Jaer breathed a little freer with more space.

"I…I don't know, sir," Jaer panted.

"What would Sir Peter do?"

"Sir Peter? He wouldn't be in this position in the first place," Jaer said. "Nor would Sir Edmund."

A slight smile flickered in the general's eyes. "You might be surprised. But I did not ask if he would be cornered, but what they would do if he were."

Jaer's brow furrowed. "Sir Peter would probably go on the attack, fiercely, and hope to batter you just far enough away to get himself out. At least I think so."

"And Sir Edmund?"

"He'd do something really strange and really unexpected." A memory of the younger king throwing his shield at his brother and grabbing a sword off the wall to attack double-bladed crossed his mind.

"And what are you going to do?" The centaur stepped forward again, menace in his pose.

Jaer stepped back, slipping in the mud. Wait. Mud. He looked down at the slippery muck and grinned. "This!"

Dropping to the ground beneath Oreius' swordstroke and releasing his shield, Jaer scooped up a handful of mud and flung it full in the face of the general. It struck true. Oreius was blinded.

Not waiting to give the centaur a chance to recover, Jaer flung another handful with equal accuracy and then dove under Oreius' shield and out of the corner. Now shieldless, he kept scooping up mud and throwing it rapidly at the general, keeping well out of range of his sword. Everyone knew how hard it was for a centaur to bend all the way over so the chances of Oreius retaliating in a similar manner were slim.

But that didn't mean he could not fight back. Jaer yelped and dove aside as Oreius threw a bucket full of water at him. Not that he could get any wetter but it was the principle of the thing. Unfortunately for the general, with the mud obscuring his vision, he failed to notice that Edmund was right behind Jaer. And the younger king took the full force of the deluge on his back.

The unexpected attack sent Edmund stumbling forward, falling flat on his face in the muck. Roaring, the younger king scrambled to his feet, defeated his opponent with a swift stroke and turned on his new foe. The indignation of his face was rather marred by the mud that coated it.

"Oreius! This was supposed to be one-on-one!"

"But you, sir knight must always be aware of your surroundings and be prepared for any new threat."

Jaer blinked. Was General Oreius being cheeky? Cautiously, he backed away from the fuming king and smirking centaur. At least, he thought he was smirking. It was hard to tell beneath the mud. Glancing about the courtyard, he spotted Jaerin getting bested by a Bear over three times his size. A sweep of the Animal's paw sent Jaerin flying across the courtyard to land hard in the mud. Back-to-back and side-to-side, brothers in battle, Oreius always said. So that meant he could help out.

As the unsuspecting Bear advanced on the stunned Jaerin, Jaer gathered up a large handful of mud and shaped it as best as possible into a ball shape. Just as Harlin—at least that was what he thought the Bear's name was—bent over to scoop of Jaerin for the "killing" blow, he threw. Smack across the nose and eyes landed the mud pie. Harlin reared back in shock, roaring out his displeasure. Jaerin shouted in delight.

"Mud fight!"

The courtyard descended into chaos. Semi-orderly duels broke apart as mud bombs flew with varying degrees of accuracy into fighter's faces. Jaer and Jaerin stood in the center of a massive muck-pile scooping and throwing with shouts of defiance. Peter leaped in to join them.

"To me all loyal Narnians! To me!" cried the High King, chunking a glob at an attacking satyr. "To me servants of Aslan!"

Edmund rolled under the barrage and came up on Jaer's left, flinging a soggy projectile as he rose. "For Narnia!"

Orieus reared up with a cry that was half neigh, half shout. "Rebellion! Soldiers of Narnia, put down this insurrection!"

"My sons! How could you lead this mutiny?" Peridan yelled above the baying and howling.

"Easily!" Jaerin hollered back. "Like this!" He lobbed a mud pie toward his father.

Peridan grinned. "So that is how it must be. Oreius, I beg leave of you to lead the charge against these erring sons of mine. I fear they have led the knights astray."

"So be it."

Jaer watched warily as the soldiers in the courtyard spread out, moving to surround the little band of boys and staying just out of easy throwing range.

"We need to a fortress," he said, glancing quickly about. "On my mark, to the water barrels. Jaerin and I can hold them off while you can take off your heavier armor there. We'll be able to maneuver better."

"An excellent plan. On your signal." Sir Peter sheathed Rhindon and filled both hands with mud.

"Annnnd…Go!"

The four boys sprinted to the wall, bombarding their enemies and being assailed in turn as they ran. A moment later, they were safely ensconced behind several large water barrels and huddled together on the stone platform.

"Quick, Ed, get my gauntlets off. I'll help you peel your stuff off first after that."

Jaer and Jaerin took up posts on either side of the two kings, swiftly gathering globs of mud and forming them into weapons. For some reason, none of the Animals or Creatures seemed to want to attack the little fortress. Peridan and Oreius were nowhere to be seen.

"Are ya scared then?" Jaerin yelled. "Come on! I dare ya!" He hefted a projectile in his hand.

"They're up to something," Jaer muttered. "Are you almost done?"

"Few more pieces." Peter's voice was muffled by his mail shirt as Edmund pulled it off his brother.

"Make it quick. Father's got something plan…oh no. Hurry!"

As Jaer watched in horror, a huge bull Elephant, by name Chiumbo, thudded into the King's Yard. Cheers rose up from the besiegers as he filled his trunk with water and stalked toward the makeshift fortress.

Peter emerged from his hauberk and looked over the barrels. "Time to abandon the keep. Quick, as soon as he's about to drown us, split up. You two go right, we'll go left. Reconvene at the gate and we'll hold them off from there. Ready?"

"Ready." Jaer passed out their weapons and braced himself at the edge of the stone. They would get one chance at this. Chiumbo stomped closer. He raised his trunk.

"Now!"

As the torrent of water poured from the Elephant's trunk, the boys fired and fled. Ducking and dodging, falling and flinging, they raced to the gate. Jaerin reached the arch first, shouting in triumph as the other three skidded to a halt beside him. Jaer shoved his sopping hair out of his face, glad to be out of the rain. Once again, the four turned and faced their attackers.

"What say you now, General Oreius?" Edmund demanded. "But one step more and we are beyond your jurisdiction. Shall we part in peace or in war?"

"I do not command this expedition, Sir Edmund. That honor belongs to Sir Peridan. It is with him that you must treat." The massive centaur was coated in mud—the formerly shining armor was dull and his flanks had lost their sheen.

"Sir Peridan? What say you to our question?"

Peridan, covered from head to toe in brown muck and looking more like one of the Witch's creatures than a normal human, took a step forward. "Have you the authority to treat with me? Was not Jaer Peridanson the instigator of this revolt?"

"He was," Jaer replied. "But he yields authority to the knight Edmund in this matter. Sir Edmund has the right to treat with you."

"Very well. Sir Edmund. You speak true when you say that you will be beyond the jurisdiction of General Oreius when once you step beyond the confines of this courtyard. However, those two of your companions who bear my name and blood will not be beyond mine. For a father's authority is not limited by geographical location. Your retreat now would place them at my mercy later. Surrender, and they will be spared—as will you and your brother also."

"Such threats are beneath you, Sir Peridan. Here on the field of battle, we meet as men and knights, face to face. To threaten to carry this to the home where a son must bow to the father is low indeed. We would not think it of you."

"'Sides," Jaerin piped up. "Mother wouldn't like it if you started throwing mud at us in the sitting room."

"I don't think he's talking about mud, Jaerin," Jaer muttered.

Peridan nodded. "You speak true. This then I ask. Yield my sons to me and you and your brother will go free."

"What manner of friends would we be who would do such a thing!" Edmund cried indignantly. "This is lower yet, Sir Peridan."

"One of them?"

"Neither. If you want them, come and claim them yourself. But you may find it harder than you think."

"Or easier." Peridan grinned.

Jaer tensed, knowing that look—it was eerily similar to the one his brother always had whenever he was planning mischief—something was about to happen. But the courtyard remained still. No one moved toward them. Beside him, Jaerin's eyes had narrowed and even the two Pevensie brothers looked faintly uneasy. This was not how it was supposed to happen.

"Now!" Peridan roared.

Before Jaer knew what was going on, a flood of chilly water smashed into his back. A second later, strong, furry arms encircled him and he found himself pinned by a Bear. Jaerin was corralled by a Satyr while two Tigers pounced on the kings, trapping them in the mud. Peridan stalked up to them followed by the mud-caked soldiers.

"Now will you surrender?"

A/N—I know, I know, it's been a long time since I updated. But for once, it really isn't my fault. I got tendonitis in my hands from too much typing and tennis and had to stop for over a month. And then there was our church retreat to plan and work to catch up on. So I have a legitimate reason this time.

The image of stern Oreius caught up in a mudfight was too amusing to ignore so I dragged him into what was originally a battle between the boys. I think it's more fun this way.

I really, really appreciate all the reviews on the last chapter. They were so encouraging. I only wish I could have had this up for you all sooner!

Oh, and the Elephant's name "Chiumbo" means "small." I could not resist.

Next chapter—In which there is an exploratory expedition