You can't possibly be doing that right" Banriel exclaimed frustrated. The girl stopped again, let out a deep breath and wipped the blood of her nose for the fourth time of the day.

Syrena was holding the stone, trying to reconnect with the trail that the gem was supposed to mark on the ground in to guide them.

Since they've woken up, she couldn't see the path anymore, as if something was blocking the strong elven power, making it harder and harder to fight it.

"It's the first time I am mastering one of the stones, take that on consideration!" she complained, though she undesrtood the hurry. They couldn't loose anymore time, but they also couldn't move any further without the seeking stone working.

"you were linked with it since yesterday..." Banriel started.

"You know how much strength is required for the use of the stone when you are a human. I am drained" Syrena stated, pulling the reins for her horse to stop on his tracks."Perhaps you shoud do it. You are the elf here" she conclueded.

"Allow me to try, then" Erlan interfered, stepping foward.

"No!" Syrena and Banriel answered in unison. "Banriel, please" Syrena looked at her friend again.

Ban looked to the people behind him, and then back at the princess.

"I am not...qualified for it. Yet" he mumbled between his teeth.

"You have Ancient elf blood" she whispered back.

"Whatever we need to do, we ought to do fast" Peter stated tiredly. "We've lost enough time already"

"He is right, quick now, Ban, just take it" Syrena took off the necklace, passing it to the eldest elf of the group.

Edmund watched the scene from affar. He didn't know much about the elven stones, only that the elves were the most powerful to use it. He wondered why Banriel wasn't the one to use it from the beggining.

If the fastest way to find Rilian was right in front of them, they might as well use it on the easiest way too.

Banriel took the stoneon his hands, reluctantly. He looked at the shinning blue piece as if it was the most beautiful thing of the world. The Stone shone brighter at the familiar touch of an elf.

He closed his eyes and started to repeat the same foreign phrase over and over again.

'Jia qe netar ty fēndir yevan trodes.'* he whispered, holding the stone tighter, until the path sparkled on the ground again.

Before Banriel could celebrate his achievement, he collapsed on the floor, screaming in agony, throwing the stone away and opening his eyes immediatly.

"Banriel!!" Syrena jumped off the horse, and ran after her friend.

Everyone surronded the Black haired elf, that was now breathing despairingly. His eyes were wilde open as they became compleatly black.

"Ban, Ban! Hey... Look at me" Syrena held his face on both of her hands, trying to make her friend foucus on her eyes. "Breath." She said calmly, matching his breathing with hers, while his iris became the inocent light brown again.

The elf acomodated on her hands and came back to his senses.

"What's wrong?" She asked in a quietly whisper.

"Something is coming" he answered with a look that the girl had never seen on his friends before, and Syrena could swear she felt a chill run up and down her spine.


The brothers were watching over the horses while the rest of the group was dispersed.

Another situation was stoping them from moving on with the mission.

Banriel and Syrena were sitting with their backs on a tree, conversating, away from everybody elss. Lucy was with the twins on the other side; actually, she was with Yralissa, watching Erlan climbing the highest tree so he could have a clear vision of the area.

"We could've used the Stones to find Eustace and Jill too, or at least to know what happened to them" Edmund started "I don't know if we should ask Banriel to do us that favor now" he stated ironicaly.

"Any idea of what happened to him?" Peter asked what Edmund had been asking himself, looking at Banriel who was still recovering from the shock.

"Aparently the stone showed him some more than he expected." Edmund awsered.

"Those things are powerful, huh?" Peter said, referring to the stone.

"That's not even the problem, Pete," the youngest stated, worried. "He saw something big, evil. It is close, probably closer than the place we are supposed to go to find Rilian." He looked at the elf and the princess, expecting to see them talking, but instead he saw Banriel with his eyes closed and Syrena's eyes glancing at his direction. He contemplated looking away, but couldn't bring himself to do so. Neither did the girl, aparently.

"Syrena said we must leave the woods." Edmund said, still looking at the girl. He averted his eyes to his brother. "Whatever this evil force is, we are more vulnerable standing in the middle of trees. We should make our way to Cair through villages" he conclueded.

"It is going to take longer..." Peter mumbled.

"Should we risk keep going through the forest?" Edmund asked. "We are wasting time here already, might as well stay safe"

"Time that we don't have" Peter confirmed Edmund's last sentence, adding another good point.

"Do you see anything, Erlan?!?" The elf girl screamed to her brother that already found himself on top of the tree.

"Stay quiet, Yralissa!!" The twim screamed back.

Edmund and Peter ran to Lucy's side, looking up to Erlan, also waiting for a response from the young Elf.

"What did your brother say about us leaving the woods?" Edmund heard a feminine voice close to his ear. He was starting to get used to Syrena's lack of personal space. Actually, he allowed himself to admit that her presence never bothered him at all. It did intimidated him sometimes, but he enjoyed having her atention.

"He hasn't given a concrete awnser yet" the dark haired king said, looking at the girl at his side.

"What do you think about it, king Edmund?" She asked, whispering as if she was telling a secret.

Edmund didn't know what to awnser. He wasn't used to people asking for his opinion when his brother was around. He felt like voicing an alternative that could go against his brother, was somehow wrong.

Before forming a opinion, he answered the question with another question.

"How much trouble are we on?" The Just King asked, taking a quick glance at Banriel, who was still away from them.

"I don't know exactly, but it is bad" Syrena answered, folowing his gaze. "I've known Banriel for four years, and I've never seen him this agitated before" she looked back at Edmund "He is from the lineage of the most powerful elves of the world. If he says something evil is ahead of us, and that we should take another way, I stand with him"

"I do belive him" Edmund replied quietly. "I'll talk to my brother" Syrena opened her mouth to thank the king, but was interupted by the youngest of the group.

"Nothing to see there" Erlan anounced after making his way down "Still, we cant be sure the path ahead is safe." He continues, keeping his voice down.

"We move foward" Peter stated for the group "Banriel, are you good to keep going?" He directed the question to the elf, who immediatly got up.

"Excelent, your majesty" Banriel spoke in response.

"Peter, what about his vision?" Lucy asked, worried.

"We can't waste anymore time, we had our break" He responded "let's find Rilian by the end of the day" Peter started walking foward the horses again.

Syrena looked at Banriel and then at Edmund, who returned the look after speaking up.

"I suppose we should vote." The dark haired proposed.

"Are you joking, Ed?" Peter turned around, cynically.

"Why, the forest is the fastest way, however is the most dangerous." Edmund explained "going through the villages is the safest way, but it will take longer. If opinions are divides, we should vote" He conclueded.

"This isn't a small counsil meeting, Edmund, we have less than a day to find Rilian and instead of keep moving, we are stuck here, arguing about making a way that might take even more time to get us to him." He started to rase his voice, already bothered by the situation. "Erlan said there's nothing in the woods. I say we keep moving east, so we keep moving east."

"This isn't a cousil meeting, Peter" Edmund repeated the words his brother told him "you don't have the final word."

When Peter started walking towards his brother, mastering the typical intimidating pose, the Magnificent King was knocked to the ground by a flying dark shadow.

A beast with the torso of a man, wings of bats, claws like griffons and goey dark skin roared, advancing towards the group again. Peter got up, drewing his sword to face the monster that was now landing in front of him. The eye sockets were compleatly unexistents, and starring at those wholes was like starring at darkness itself.

Everyone was standing there in shock, until the beast roared again.

The agonizing sound woke them up from the trance and the group immediatly mobilezed to save themselves and each other.

"PETER!" Lucy screamed the brother's name as the monster walked in his direction. Edmund and ran after the eldest to help him to his feet.

An arrow flew past the brother's while they were running at the opposite direction, but the bowshot missed the oponent.

"DARN IT" Banriel cursed, drawing another arrow, backing up his paces as the monster aproached. Syrena drew her sword, as did Queen Lucy.

The beast advanced again, mouth wilde open. Dozens of teeth ready to dig in flesh.

The claws reached the two men in front, pulling Peter away from safety, but Edmund stabed its right wing before the monster could harm his brother. and the beast wilded in pain freeing the blonde from their gastly claws, and Peter prepared his sword to strike the beast again, this time in the heart, but that demon was way taller than him.

"Stay behind me" Syrena pushed the twins to her side "Banriel!!" The girl screamed at the elf who knoked another arrow. he looked directly at the beast trying to stead his shaking hands. He aimed at the gruesome facs, and drew the sword along with a deep breath, but before he could loose the arrow, another dart hit the monster's stomach.

Lucy, Syrena and the elves immediatly looked behind to face two dwarves, one holding an empty bow and the other, holding an axe. They shouted loud and ran towards the monster, joining the pevensie brothers on the intention of take killing the demon.

Edmund and Peter couldn't even process the presence of the new addition to the fight.

The smaller dwarf shot another arrow that hit the the neck of the monster, the eldest dwarf dug his axe in one of the gooey legs, making the beast fall.

Edmund, now being able to reach the head, carved his sword through the eyes of the beast, at the same time that Peter plunged his blade right into the heart in a syncronized strike.

Edmund drew his sword out of the thick skull, and black collored blood splattered over his face.

He was still breathing deeply, looking down at the fallen creature, trying to assimilate what it could be.

"Another one??" The young archer dwarf asked his companion.

"The second one since you brought in those humans, Poggin" The dwarf with the axe answered. He had some dead rabbits tied around his waist, giving away the Idea that the pair was hunting nearby.

"Do you know what they are?" Edmund asked concerned, as Lucy ran over to them, hugging Peter, who seem to have had the worst of the fight.

"No" awnsered the dark haired dwarf "It is the second time I see them"

"A Goblevern " Banriel blurted out, examinating the dead monster, closely.

"Goblevern, huh? What in the realm is that?" The eldest dwarf asked, retorically.

"A combination of wyverns and goblins" Banriel explained, summing it up, as if he was explaining that oceans are made of water.

"Another curse of those humans, I bet" the red haired grumpy dwarf exclaimed.

"You mean the calormanes?" Syrena asked, already bothered by his tone.

"I mean all of you!!" He gestured to the group "Everytime something bad happens in this world, humans are involved. Poggin here brought some of you to our village three days ago, and now Narnia is doomed, and these demons keep showing up around home" The eldest dwarf kept complaining.

"One of those humans was the king, Grenabrog!" The dark haired dwarf named Poggin said, annoyed by his friend "And if it wasn't for them, you would still be a cupbearer of some tarkaan"

"What did you say?!" Syrena stepped foward, asking Poggin to repeat.

"That he would be a cupbearer..." Poggin started.

"Before that" Lucy interrupted "you said Narnia is doomed, right?" She asked concerned with a weight on her heart.

"That I did" Poggin responded, not sure if he should continue to talk to those strangers.

"And you said something about the king. Is he in your village?" Edmund interfered. Poggin suddently stopped answering, realizing he could be facing a group of calormanes trying to get information about the king and their camp.

"Still there alright!" Grenabrog complained. Edmund flashes his eyes toward Syrena, expecting a reaction from the girl after hearing of her brother, but the girl had a blunt look. "He is there, setting tents and making royal plans and putting us in danger" Grenabrog muttered, spiting on the ground, Yralissa grimaced at him.

"Can you take us to him?" Lucy asked in the softest tone "we have the mission of finding the king" she stated.

"Why?" Poggin asked, suspiciously.

"I am high king Peter" the blonde eldest interfered " these are my siblings, Queen Lucy and King Edmund." He gestured acordedly "And that..." He turned to the eldest girl "is princess Syrena, king Rilian's sister" Peter finished his introductions, looking back at the dwarfs.

A silence laid still as they waited for the dwarves react to that information. Grenabrog then bursted in laughter.

"Did you hear that?? Poggin, the kings and Queens of old" he laughed again, coffed, then laughed again" and the princess, too?" Poggin laughed humoresless, imitating his friend " The rulers of old are long gone, my lad. And the Princess is dead" Grenabrog spat the words. Peter narrowed his eyes at him.

"Aye, she is. You will only call me by Syrena" The girl anwsered the two friends "now take me to my brother" she said, pulling the dwarf's beard and raising her sword to his neck.

"Not the beard!" Grenabrog exclaimed, raising his hands.

"Syrena, calm down" Lucy pleaded but the eldest ignored.

Syrena then turned around when she felt hand on her shoulders. Now, face to face with Edmund, she sensed some of her anger disapear, and he seemed to notice as well, for he took the oportunity to put her arm down, slowly, getting in the middle of the girl and Grenabrog.

"What kind of proof do you need?" Edmund asked the dwarf, being as diplomatic as he remembered he could be.

"Anything that proves that you are not calormane spies" Poggin awnsered for his friend, raising his hands in surrender "we are just trying to protect ourselves" he finished.

"I understand your concern" he asnwered back "do they look like calormanes to you?" Edmund asked, pointing at the group of elves behind him.

"Elves are not narnians, can't be trusted either" Grenabrog complained again. "Might as well be more dangerous than Men"

"On that you are right" It was Banriel's turn to respond his arrogance "You will see how dangerous we are if you don't shut up" he threatned the dwarf that made him lost his temper.

"You made Banriel lost patience, I should

give you a silver coin for that" Syrena mocked, looking at her elf friend "the golden one is already mine" she whispered at her friend, trying to distract him from the unconfortable situation.

"You ain't nothing by threatning us, you know?" Poggin said, regaining attention to the problem.

"take our weapons and horses with you" Edmund started.

"What!?" Peter screamed from behind, but Edmund only raised his hand to him, gesturing for his brother to let him handle the situation. Edmund continued:

"when we get to the camp, take us to the king. If we are who we say we are, he will recognise his own sister, don't you think?" He asked Poggin, who found it reasonable "If we are not who we say we are... You may kill us on the spot" He finished looking at the two little men.

"Edmund, I am not sure..." Lucy started, but Grenabrog interrupted

"Deal!" He said without excitation, "but we will have to tie you up!" He exclamed.

"Of course" Syrena responded ironically, between her teeth.

"Fair enough" Edmund asnwered the dwarf, handing the sword to him with it's blade down.

"Pardon me, but I am not being tied up by dwarves" Yralissa complained to the just king, and then looked at her friend "Syri..." she begged in silence.

Syrena looked at her with reassurence eyes. "Trust him" she whispered, while Grenabrog tied her hands together. "I hope you are right" she said to Edmund.

He just looked at her, concerned, but managed to smile tenderly.

"We will get to him" was all he managed to respond.

"Come" Grenabrog pushed her back, forcing her to walk to one of the horses. She had to breath very deeply to not lose her temper with the small creature.

" You know, If you do get to kill us..." she started, feeling the dwarf press an adaga against her spine "...make sure to behead those three elves back there with a sharp quick strike, or they will come back to haunt you" She then smiled after taking a glimpse of Edmund trying to hide his quiet laugh.


"And to think we are in this mess only because you wanted to see the castle" Erlan mumbled to Yralissa.

Edmund was in front of the twins, and beside Lucy. The four of them were tied to one of the horses that was being pulled by Poggin, and in front of the group, Peter, Syrena and Banriel were tied to another one of the horses, being pulled by Grenabrog.

Lucy heard the twins talking about the castle and couldn't help trying to picture how the new rebuilt Cair Paravel would look like.

"I didn't just want to see the castle" Yralissa responded the brother annoyed "I wanted to see the dragons" she said with a dreaming voice.

Edmund stopped on his tracks and looked at the girl.

"What dragons? Are there dragons in Cair?" The king asked intriged. Lucy looked at Yralissa, also interested on whatever her answer would be. Erlan looked at her sister with a disaproval look, as if she had just entered a subject that she should've kept to herself.

"Well I...thought there might be." Yralissa replied "where else would king Rilian keep them?"

"Keep them who?" Edmund asked further.

"Verzandil and Raxian" The girl mentioned again. The Pevensies looked at each other, confused still. "Syrena talks about them all the time, right Erlan?"

The boy narrowed his light eyes at his sister, mentally begging her to shut up.

"Never heard of them" Edmund awnsered trying to remember everything Eustace and Jill said about Narnia on their last adventure. Narnia had changed a lot since him and Lucy last set foot here, but not much time has passed since their cousin's last experience. Did he mentioned any dragons? His memory was failing him. In any case, it would be really captivating to see a dragon closely. One who isn't Eustace.

Only then Edmund recalled the names. Verzandill and Raxian. He had heard Syrena and Banriel talking about them the night before.

"They are better of without me"

Was that what she said?

His thoughts were interrupted buy the sound of a horn. Edmund looked in front of him to see yellow banners nailed on the soil around the place, every single one of those banners proudly carring the image of a red lion. Makeshifted tents and Royal tents mixed together covered the entire perimeter. By far, he could see all types of creatures: Dwarves, fauns, centaures, humans, animals. He was home at last.

"Who are them, Grena?" A dwarf sitting on top of a rock right on the entrance, asked. "More mouths to feed?"

"Prisioners." He corrected. "And more rabbits to fill up your fat belly, brother" Grenabrog laughed, followed by his brother.

"They are not prisioners, Drusnabron!" Poggin responded from behind. "They are here to see the king."

"Ney. No more creatures setting foot on the villlage. We have no spaces left to raise more tents" The dwarf Drusnabron responded.

"Then bring the king out here" Syrena spoke up.

"Who here is talking to you, lass?" The dwarf jumped off of the rock and walked towards the group, standing in front of Syrena "If you weren't so pretty I'd cut your face as a reminder to stay away from dwaven terriotory"

"This is narnian terriotory and she is your princess, you shall treat her as such" Lucy spoke from behind Syrena, before she could.

"Want some cuts on your pretty face too?" He asked rispidly, pointing the knife at Lucy. Peter clenched his fists at the threat. "Dwarves don't have human princesses or kings or Queens. Not anymore!" Drusnabron scremad at them.

"Is that why the king is setting camp under your roof?" Syrena asked sarcasticly.

"He is not my king" Drusnabron asnwered between his teeth.

"Funny how you're still living in his lands" Syrena replied the dwarf with a smug smiled.

He came closer to her, fumming in anger.

"You have a sharpe tongue, don't you?" He tried to reach for her face "maybe I'll use your tongue to shapen my blade..." he threatned again, this time raising his blade to her face.

"Dwarf!!" A strong voice came from inside the Camp.

The dark skinned woman aproached the group. Her telmarine armour making noise as she walked with heavy steps.

"Get away from this woman, right now!" She comanded, rispidly. Her voice could tear down any silence like tunder.

"I don't take orders from women, left alone, telmarines." Drusnabron said, before before the woman aproach him, and pull him to the ground.

"I swore to protect this girl on the day she was born, the king and queen and the stars as my witnesses. I intend on doing that today." she said between her teeth, threaning to draw her sword out of it's sheath. "stay away from her, little man"

Syrena's eyes litted up when she saw the familiar figure.

"Brizlei" she whispered, trying to maintain her posture, though a knot was already forming on her throat "I thought you were..."

"General, I apologize for my stupid friend. I beg you to not hurt him and to give us clear passage..." Poggin pleaded, but his request fell on deaf years, for all the general could see was the girl in front of her.

Looking at her Princess, mentee and friend like she was facing a ghost, Brizlei ran to Syrena and wrapped the young woman in her arms.

"I knew it" the general whispered into her ear " you are too stubborn to die."


*I am willing to take your Power