After the events of the last week, Elaine expected to sleep like a rock that night.
However, a large shadow passed by her tent at just the right time when she was drifting in and out of consciousness. She fell back onto the bed to return to sleep when her hazy mind registered that the shadow had been in the shape of Aslan.
Curious, Elaine got out of bed and put on her green cloak before quietly exiting her tent. When she looked over, she saw Lucy and Susan coming out of their own tent as well.
Elaine put her finger to her lips and motioned for them to follow her.
The three girls followed after Aslan into the surrounding forest, trying their best not to make a sound.
It appeared they didn't do a very good job because Aslan paused for a second then said, "Shouldn't you three be in bed?"
The girls sheepishly looked at one another and abandoned their spot behind one of the trees.
"We couldn't sleep," Lucy told him as they walked up to him.
"Please, Aslan. Couldn't we come with you?" Susan asked.
"I would be glad of the company for a while," Aslan said. "Thank you."
Elaine could hear deep sorrow in his voice which contrasted greatly with the normally gentle and loving words he spoke.
Elaine and Lucy went on one side of him while Susan went on the other. They each tenderly put one hand onto his mane, and then they all started walking forward.
The short walk was silent, and the air heavy. Something was wrong, but none of them knew what it was or felt it appropriate to ask. Where were they going? And why were they going there at such a late hour?
After a few more minutes, Aslan stopped. "It is time. From here, I must go on alone."
"But, Aslan—" Susan started.
"You have to trust me, for this must be done. Thank you, Susan. Thank you, Lucy. Thank you, Elaine. And farewell."
Farewell? What was he talking about? What had to be done?
They watched Aslan walk deeper into the forest. Susan put her hand on Lucy's shoulder.
"Come on," Elaine said to them.
She led the two of them to a space between two rocks where they could remain hidden but still see the large clearing past the forest.
All three of them were speechless at the sight before them and they felt their stomachs twist into knots. Torches lit up a place where the White Witch's army had gathered in front of a large table made of stone.
The Stone Table.
No. No, he couldn't possibly be doing what Elaine thought he was doing.
Aslan calmly walked up the stairs through the crowd of creatures as they all growled and screeched at him.
The Witch stepped up near the top of the Table as Aslan approached. "Behold," she crooned. "The Great Lion."
A minotaur poked Aslan with his axe which made him growl. The Witch nodded, and the minotaur roughly knocked him over with the axe.
The three girls flinched.
"Here, kitty, kitty," the Witch's dwarf taunted. "You want some milk?"
"Why doesn't he fight back?" Lucy asked.
"I don't know," Elaine whispered. "Maybe…he's waiting for the right time."
"Bind him!" the Witch ordered.
Her minions quickly tied up Aslan's feet and muzzle.
"Wait. Let him first be shaved."
The girls watched in horror as the Witch's dwarf took out a knife and cut off part of Aslan's mane. He threw the piece of fur into the air victoriously as the creatures cheered and roared in triumph. More of them brought out their own knives and swords and wildly cut off the rest of Aslan's beautiful, golden mane.
It wasn't enough to just sacrifice him. The Witch had to humiliate him.
"Bring him to me."
Two of the creatures used the ropes that bound Aslan to roughly pull him up onto the Table as the shouts got louder and louder. The Witch threw her arm out and immediately, everyone silenced.
The quiet seemed to smother the girls as they powerlessly watched the terrible scene unfold before them.
After a few seconds, some of the creatures began banging their staffs onto the ground, and soon triumphant roars, howls, and screeches filled the night air once more. The Witch knelt down and whispered something to Aslan, but Elaine was too far away to make out what it was. She wasn't sure she even wanted to know.
When the Witch stood back up, she announced to her followers, "Tonight…the Deep Magic will be appeased! But tomorrow…we will take Narnia…FOREVER!"
The cheers and roars got even louder as the staffs banged on the ground even faster.
The Witch glared down at Aslan. "In that knowledge…despair…"
She held a sharp stone knife high above her.
No, no, this couldn't be happening.
Aslan looked out at the three girls and even from the great distance, Elaine met eyes with him. It felt like he was staring straight through her, seeing all her worries and fears and doubts and silently calming them. He didn't look scared for himself but scared for them. How could he be that close to death, something he'd willingly chosen, and be more scared for someone else? How could anyone or anything have that kind of love?
"And…DIE!"
Lucy, Susan, and Elaine gasped in horror as the Witch plunged the knife into Aslan's body. Their hearts sank as his eyes closed, and he took one last exhale. Elaine quickly pulled the two Pevensie girls into her arms as they all began to sob.
"The Great Cat…is DEAD!" the Witch yelled.
All of the gathered creatures roared victoriously.
"General! Prepare your troops for battle! However short it may be."
Elaine didn't understand how Aslan could let this happen. Why would he do this? He could've saved himself if he wanted to. Why did he just give himself over to the enemy on the night before their greatest battle? How were they going to do this without him?
The girls waited in silence for the creatures to leave the Stone Table.
Once the early morning was quiet again, they slowly came out of their hiding place and approached Aslan's body.
Tears ran down all three girls' cheeks at the sight of the Lion they had once believed to be undefeatable. It all seemed like a terrible dream. Aslan couldn't really be dead.
But no matter how much Elaine wished it to be a dream, this nightmare was very real.
Lucy walked up the steps and sat next to him. Desperate to find some way to heal Aslan, she took out her cordial.
"It's too late," Susan said softly. "He's gone."
Elaine stood at the edge of the Table by Aslan's head and gently rubbed what was left of his mane. "He can't be gone…"
But he was. The Great Lion lay on the Stone Table lifeless.
Susan slowly walked up the steps to sit on the other side of him. "He must have known what he was doing."
The three girls began sobbing again as they hugged his body. It didn't seem fair that just as things started to make sense, if only a little, he was taken away from them.
They all looked up at the sound of quiet squeaking and saw mice crawling onto Aslan.
"Get away!" Susan cried. "Get away, all of you!"
"No," Lucy whispered. "Look."
They realized that the mice were actually chewing away the ropes that bound him. Once the ropes snapped, Susan, Lucy, and Elaine gently took all of the horrible cords off his body to free him.
Lucy gently stroked his fur and rested her head on his.
"We have to tell the others," Susan stated.
"We can't just leave him," Lucy said.
"Lucy, there's no time. They need to know."
"It's okay, I'll go," Elaine told them.
"No, you can't go alone!"
"Your place is here, and mine is there. I've been training especially hard for this battle. Peter and Edmund need me right now. I may not be in the prophecy, but I have to fight."
Lucy looked around her and she remembered something Mr. Tumnus had told her when she had come to Narnia for the very first time. "The trees. They can help you."
Elaine glanced at the trees that made up the dense forest. "I'll be careful. And I'll watch out for your brothers. I promise."
Lucy and Susan nodded sadly.
The girl left the Stone Table and retreated back into the forest. "Hello?" she called out to the trees. "Is anyone there?" Tears began to sink down her cheeks again. "I…need your help."
Elaine collapsed onto the forest floor in sobs. She curled up into a tight ball as her grief threatened to consume her. Killian's most important lesson came to her mind: no matter how many times you fall, always get back up.
But she couldn't make her body move. The thought of never feeling that beautiful warm and safe feeling when Aslan was near ever again was too much to handle. How could she possibly get back up now?
Something rubbed her cheek and caused her to look up.
A figure made entirely out of pink flower petals knelt over her. "I'm here, my lady," the figure said softly.
Elaine slowly forced herself to sit up. "I have to get back to Aslan's camp. But how am I supposed to tell them what happened? How can we keep going without him?"
The petals stroked her hair. "We all feel the loss of our King, my lady. Aslan created us and breathed life into us himself. With his death, a part of us has gone with him. We do not understand why he would do this, but Aslan has never made the wrong decision before. I will take you back to camp and help you tell the others. You do not have to do this alone."
The petals made Elaine rise to her feet and wiped away some of her tears. "Thank you."
The figure led Elaine back to Aslan's camp. The entire walk, she tried to think of how she could soften the news, but there was simply no way to make what she had to tell them any less terrible.
Elaine stopped in front of Peter and Edmund's tent.
The figure held out her petaled hand. "Come, my lady. It is time."
With a deep breath, Elaine wiped her eyes and quietly entered the tent. Upon hearing the noise, Peter instinctively whipped out his sword.
Elaine quickly held her hands up. "Peter, it's just me." She pointed to the petaled figure. "This is a friend."
"What is it?" Peter asked. His eyes adjusted and he noticed that Elaine was crying. "What's wrong?"
"We bring grave news from your sisters," the figure told them.
"I don't know how to tell you this, but…Aslan is dead," Elaine said. "The White Witch killed him last night on the Stone Table."
Both boys were silent for a moment as they tried to process the words they were hearing.
"That can't be true," Peter whispered.
"I'm afraid it is, Your Majesties," the petaled figure said sadly.
More tears ran down Elaine's cheeks. "Susan, Lucy, and I saw all of it."
Peter bolted out of his hammock and raced out of his own tent and into Aslan's.
With an ashen face, Edmund stumbled out of the tent as well with Elaine following behind him.
Oreius slowly walked up to Aslan's tent with a sullen expression as if he already knew what had transpired.
Peter numbly exited the empty tent. "She's right. He's gone."
He walked forward to the table where all of the battle plans he had previously gone over with Aslan rested.
Edmund exchanged a look with Oreius and Elaine before turning back to his brother. "Then you'll have to lead us."
Peter looked at him doubtfully.
"Peter, there's an army out there, and it's ready to follow you."
"I can't!"
"Aslan believed you could. And so do I."
Elaine put a hand on Peter's. "We all do."
Peter looked up at his brother, who he hadn't gotten along with in years, and Elaine, who only about a week ago couldn't stand him. Yet now after all they'd been through together, Edmund had complete faith in him and Elaine whole-heartedly trusted him. A blaze of confidence began to burn in Peter's eyes.
"The Witch's army is nearing, sire," Oreius said. "What are your orders?"
After spending the entire time in Narnia denying his role as future king of the land, Peter finally accepted that he was in control, and he began hurriedly looking over all of the maps in front of him. "Elaine, you told me that you studied battle plans and strategies with your father. So help me figure out what we should do." He looked straight at her with earnest eyes. "I'm listening."
Elaine smiled a little. Then she quickly wiped away her fresh tears and stood next to him to look over the battle plans he and Aslan had worked on.
"You and I will be on the front lines here," she pointed out. "We can have archers up on this ridge here. Edmund, could you lead them?"
"Yes," Edmund answered confidently.
"Good. Once we've helped get rid of some the Witch's numbers, we could fall back and use the rocks here as a cover. Then they'll be in better range of the archers who can attack from the ridge. We can have half of them remain up there and the other half come down and join the fight."
"What if we send the griffins overhead in advance?" Peter offered. "We could have them fly over the Witch's army and drop boulders on them which will help thin them out before we clash in the middle."
"Like the raids back home," Elaine put together.
"Exactly."
The two of them quickly formulated the remaining details of their plan for the upcoming battle then instructed Oreius to ready their army while they went to their tents to prepare.
Alaesa nimbly stepped inside Elaine's tent with Vaella and Rayne. Each of them held a piece of armor.
"It's true, isn't it?" Alaesa asked softly. "That Aslan has died."
Elaine sighed and nodded.
"We felt it the moment it happened." She tenderly put her hand to Elaine's cheek. "I'm sorry you had to witness something so horrible. You are very brave for preparing to fight in this battle even without him."
"Aslan instructed Killian and Oreius to train us for this reason. We cannot simply let Narnia fall into the Witch's hands."
"You are truly a noble Daughter of Eve. Allow us to help you into your armor."
The armor was much lighter than Elaine had expected and she could feel very little difference with or without it on. She was glad because this would help her stay protected while also not limiting her when she fought.
Vaella then tied her hair into several braids and then handed her her helmet.
Alaesa, Vaella, and Rayne quietly exited the tent to finish the rest of the preparations for the battle.
A small glimmer from Elaine's satchel caught her eye. She picked up the bag and took out the silver mirror Father Christmas had given her.
"How can we survive this battle without Aslan?" she asked it. "Why would he give himself up to the Witch like that? Why would he leave us on our own?"
The mirror flashed and her reflection disappeared. The glass now showed the four Pevensies together in a line from eldest to youngest.
Elaine didn't know how seeing the Pevensie children together was supposed to be an answer to her questions. She waited to see if the image changed at all, but nothing else happened.
Maybe she was supposed to use the picture to find an answer to the posed question herself.
She recalled that first night at the Beavers' dam when she'd first heard the prophecy.
'When Adam's flesh and Adam's bone sits at Cair Paravel in throne, the evil time will be over and done.'
The Witch had needed blood to satisfy the Deep Magic that had become disrupted due to Edmund's treachery. Had Edmund been killed by the Witch to restore that balance, the prophecy would have unraveled before their eyes. Aslan had taken his place to save not just him but all of Narnia. And he been able to do that because he had trusted the Pevensies and Elaine to lead the Narnians into battle without him.
She now understood why he had given himself over to the Witch and felt renewed confidence in herself and her ability to fight and protect Narnia.
Elaine returned the mirror to her satchel and pulled out her staff then exited her tent.
She had a battle to win.
"Elaine."
Elaine turned to see Edmund walking toward her now dressed in Narnian armor. "Are you ready?"
"The Witch killed Aslan on the Stone Table," he said sullenly. "It…was supposed to be me, wasn't it? It should've been me."
Elaine put her hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eye. "Aslan believed you were worthy enough for him to give up his life. Honor his sacrifice by fighting as hard as you can."
Edmund clenched his jaw and nodded once.
Elaine walked to the back of the camp. "Hello, Meera."
The mare bowed her head. "I heard the news, Daughter. I'm so sorry."
The girl gently rubbed Meera's mane. "Are you sure it's all right for you to wear a saddle? I know how much you are already offering by just letting me ride you."
"This is one of the most important days in Narnian history. I want to make sure that you can focus on the battle and not staying on top of me. If that means I wear a saddle, then I shall wear one proudly."
Elaine softly rested her head on the horse's. "I'm scared," she whispered.
Meera nuzzled Elaine's cheek. "I'm here. I will always be here for you as long as I am able. You have fought well the last several days. No matter what happens today out on the battlefield, I am very proud of you."
Elaine took a deep breath and mounted onto Meera's back. "Let's go."
At the front lines of the army, Peter, Elaine, and Oreius looked across the large battlefield, waiting for the Witch and her army to appear.
One of their griffin scouts soared overhead and landed next to them. "They come, Your Highness, in numbers and weapons far greater than our own."
"Numbers do not win a battle," Oreius said.
"No," Peter muttered. "But I bet they help."
The Witch's army finally came into view, and immediately, Elaine realized that the griffin's words were true. Her army was at least double the size of theirs. A nervous and heavy air settled on Aslan's soldiers as they watched their odds of winning diminish before their very eyes.
Peter turned and looked to the top of the ridge where Edmund stood.
His brother gave him a confident nod.
Peter once again faced the field ahead of them, took out his sword, and held it high above him. This seemed to remind the army that no matter the odds, they fought for Aslan always. The entire army let out a battle cry behind him, ready to honor and fight for their beloved King.
Elaine wasn't sure she'd ever been more terrified, but dressed in armor and ready to fight in battle like this, she had never felt closer to her father. She now truly understood what it meant to fight for their country and admired him all the more for his bravery. She could imagine his proud smile as he watched his daughter fight to defend Narnia from the Witch's evil power and save everyone in it.
On the Witch's command, her army charged across the battlefield. Peter and Edmund signaled for the griffins to begin their initial attack.
The flock of griffins, including their scout, soared above them and dropped heavy rocks and boulders onto the Witch's approaching army which helped thin out their massive numbers.
Elaine's heartbeat quickened as she watched the army draw closer and closer.
Peter turned to Oreius. "Are you with me?"
"To the death," Oreius responded.
He then turned to Elaine. "And you?"
Elaine's eyes held as much fear as Peter's, but she replied firmly, "Always."
And she realized that she whole-heartedly meant it. Despite feeling angry and hopeless at the train station when she was forced to part ways with the only family she had left, despite trying desperately to distance herself from the other people in the Professor's mansion, despite not being in a grand prophecy and feeling horribly unwanted, despite everything, she now truly wanted to fight alongside Peter Pevensie and she was fully prepared to give her life for him if she had to.
Peter looked forward and held his sword high. "FOR NARNIA! AND FOR ASLAN!"
With a triumphant cry, Aslan's army charged towards the Witch's army with Peter, Elaine, and Oreius taking the lead. Animals and creatures from both sides roared and yelled which could barely be heard over the thundering sound of thousands of feet racing across the battlefield. Banners and flags flew in the wind, and the centaurs at the front lines lowered their long spears in front of them as the two armies drew nearer and nearer to each other.
Time seemed to slow to a crawl. Elaine closed her eyes and could hear her heartbeat in her ears. Her grip on her staff and Meera's saddle tightened.
This was it. Everything she had experienced over the last week and a half, perhaps even the weeks before then, had brought them all to this moment.
Please, Aslan, if you're listening, guide us to victory.
The two armies collided on the battlefield and war broke out.