*Chapter 22- First to the Finish*

Hello all! I felt the need to update today.

Thanks to all who reviewed and who are going to check out EPIC by HILLBILLYHUNTERS XD, aka me and Jordi(imprintedjet09) If you haven't yet, then I think you should. It's definitely good for a laugh.

Now enjoy. 3

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Penelope her arms into the suit of chain mail, tugging it over her head and adjusting it on her torso. The metal was heavy and thick and uncomfortable on her skin, when she was used to the thin material of her dresses. She had, for the raid on the castle, worn a thin layer of chain mail for her arms and midsection, but that was only one layer and no where near as heavy as this was. She watched as a lady dwarf bent over and placed another set of chain mail at her feet, this one made into two long tube like shapes that were clearly meant for her legs.

"Step into this, please, Milady." she said to Penelope in her high pitched voice, and she did so. The dwarf pulled the chain mail up her legs and waited as Penelope pulled the red tunic with the golden emblem of the lion over herself, and then tied a brown leather belt around her hips, holding the bottom layer of chain mail in place. She handed Penelope the metal arm guards, which she proceeded to fasten to her arms while the dwarf did the same with the matching shin guards. Penelope then slid the leather gloves over her hands. She was soon completely covered in armor, no part of her skin was left bare.

Iridescent came into the room with a handful of hairpins in her hands and smiled at Penelope, though it didn't reach her wary lavender eyes. Penelope swallowed hard. She knew her friend hated the idea of her challenging the Telmarine king to a duel. But Penelope had to. It was the only thing keeping her brother safe. And it would promise the liberation of Narnia.

"Let's get your hair up, then." Iridescent said, coming over next to Penelope. The two girls sat down cross-legged, the elf behind the human, and sat in silence as Iridescent took Penelope's long blonde hair in her hands and braided it into a plait. Penelope drew unrecognizable shapes in the dirt as Iridescent took the braid and piled it to the top of her head, pinning it down with the bobby pins until it was able to stay atop her head without the assistance of Iridescent. The elf then moved in front of Penelope and fanned the bottom of her hair, which due to the position of the braid rested on her forehead, across her forehead into Peter's style of bangs.

"Alright," she said after a minute of studying her handiwork, and getting to her feet. "I'm done with you."

Penelope stood and trekked over to the tiny mirror which hung on the wall, her motions awkward because of the heavy armor weighing her down, and looked at herself. She let out a gasp, for staring back at her wasn't her, but was the splitting image of her brother, Peter. There was no doubt that they were twins. If Penelope hadn't known any better, she would have thought she was Peter. Iridescent had done good with her hair, and the armor covered up her feminine features. Susan had advised she bind her breasts with a cloth to make them appear flatter, and to put more layering at her waist to cover the feminine curves, both of which Penelope had, and Susan was right- there was hardly any indication to the womanly body the armor was containing.

She turned back to her childhood friend, who was looking at her with a mixture of pride and fear written on her beautiful face. Iridescent smiled at her and held out a sword which was still in its sheath, a sheath of red leather with silver detailing. The handle of the sword had a silver lion's head, the detailing on this was incredible, and from the sheath was a plain leather belt to attach the sword. Penelope reverently took Rhindon from her friend's hands and unsheathed the legendary sword as visions of her brother's past adventures in Narnia sang through her head.

As she drew the sword from the sheath with a satisfying zing, she noticed letters etched into the flat of the blade, and though she couldn't make out what they said, she felt the power they spoke of flow through her.

"When Aslan bares His teeth, winter meets its death. When He shakes His mane, we shall have spring again." Iridescent said in a low voice, her violet eyes shining in the firelight. Penelope gazed up at her friend and knew that she was experiencing the same magic she was, and Iridescent stepped forward and took Penelope's free hand. "Aslan is with you, Penny," she whispered, squeezing the younger girl's hand. "He is watching you today and He will not let you fall. Narnia needs you, your family needs her, Caspian needs you. Aslan will preserve you. You are his chosen one."

Penelope felt her heart swell with these words of encouragement. Iridescent had absolute faith in her, and Aslan. Aslan, who had protected her the first 16 years of her life, Aslan who had brought her together with her family, Aslan who had lead her to Caspian.

There was a soft knock on the large door barricading the two girls from the curious eyes of the Narnians as Penelope prepared for the duel. Edmund's voice floated into the chamber.

"Penelope? Are you ready? The duel's to start in half and hour, the Telmarines are already gathering at the arena."

Penelope again looked into the calm eyes of Iridescent before sheathing Rhindon and making her way over to the door, which she threw open to reveal her younger brother standing there at the door way, a surprised look capturing his features.

"Oh, Peter, I thought you were going to be dressed up as a Telmarine?" he asked, his murky brown eyes clouded. Penelope giggled.

"He is," she replied, and Edmund's eyes widened even more, if possible, and his mouth became a perfect little 'o' of surprise.

"Oi! You two really are identical twins!" he cried, getting over his momentary shock and becoming his usual cheeky self. But Penelope, knowing her favorite sibling as well as she did, could see through his ruse for what it was and could easily read the distress swimming in the murky pool of brown eyes. Penelope tried to smile, but found it faltered on her face and she simply reached out a slightly trembling hand and laid it on her younger brother's arm. Edmund looked down at her, a whirlpool of emotions evident on his face.

"It will all be fine, Edmund," she whispered, knowing it was what he needed to hear. "Don't worry. That old Telmarine won't know what's hit him by the time I'm done with him."

Edmund let out a short, bark like laugh, shaking his head with a jerkish motion. "It's not Miraz I'm worried about."

Penelope sighed deeply and swallowed hard. She suddenly found she couldn't meet her brother's eyes. Edmund was known for being quite and not very open with his emotions, and the fact that he was sharing now was.. Well, not all that great, considering it just added to Penelope's inner anxiety. So she pulled him into an awkward, one-armed hug that looked forced to an outsider, but really was a heartfelt action for both parties, before pulling away and stepping around him into the hallway.

She started slowly for the main chamber in the How, her heart rate accelerating with each step she took. Penelope put up a strong front about the fight when she was with others, but inside she was waging a war upon herself. She knew she was a mediocre sword fighter, and knew also Miraz surely wouldn't be. He was, after all, a king and a conqueror of sorts. He had to be a formidable warrior to accomplish all that he had in his many years of life. That was another thing concerning Penelope. Miraz was probably double her age, at the very least, and a great deal bigger. He would not only have experience, but size on his side. The odds of Penelope winning, she admitted to herself, were slimmer than Reepicheep's tiny rapier.

Penelope reached the entrance to the How and found Peter and Caspian waiting for her, a helmet in the latter's hands. Penelope had to do a double take to recognize her twin, for he was, as suggested by Edmund, disguised as a Telmarine youth. He was wearing Caspian's clothes he had worn when making his daring escape from the Telmarine castle over two weeks earlier, and had layers of dirt caked onto his pale skin, giving it the tan appearance of the Telmarines. His blonde hair was concealed by a wig of brown horse hair, and upon this he had a helmet to secure it to his head. A regular sword was strapped to his hip, which his hand rested on the hilt of. He looked convincing, and had Penelope not been able to sense it was her twin, she would have guessed it was a stable boy from Miraz's army, come to join their side. Which was believable, seeing as the way lesser members of the army were treated by the usurper and his higher ranking men was questionable with the greatest flattery, as was reported to the Narnian monarchs by their spies.

Peter's eyes swept over her sister and he let out a low whistle. "Wow, Penny. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought you were that King Peter fellow."

"And if I didn't know any better, dear brother, I would have thought you a Telmarine stableman." she replied lightly, plucking his nose between her thumb and forefinger. Caspian coughed lightly.

"Here is your helmet." he said, handing the object of conversation to her. She pulled her chain mail hood up over her head, and having taken the helmet placed it on her head. She fastened the thin leather strap under her chin, securing the helmet tightly.

"Wait." Peter said suddenly, his brow creasing. "You're not supposed to enter the tournament armed, you're supposed to be provided with your weapons from chosen soldiers." he said, pointedly looking down to the sword strapped to her waist.

"Oh, right," Penelope recalled Caspian explaining this to her as they were fine tuning the plans of the duel. She undid the belt and held the sword in her hand, looking unsurely down at it before up at her brother. "I take it you cannot be the one to bring me Rhindon?"

Regret flashed in Peter's eyes. "I'm sorry, Penelope, it'd be too risky to have us side by side in front of Miraz. The Telmarines might notice we look alike and the whole plan would be ruined."

Penelope sighed. "Right, then.." she murmured, before her eyes flashed with hope and she turned her gaze to Caspian.

"Caspian, would you be the one to bring me Rhindon?"

Caspian's jaw squared itself off and his eyes turned cold. "I am sorry, Penelope, but I have other engagements to attend to." he said, his voice firm and unfamiliar.

Penelope sucked in a cold breath. His tone shattered her calm aura and her heart plummeted to her feet. "You mean you aren't going to stay and watch the duel?" she asked quietly.

Caspian's expression remained cold. "I am sorry. I have already made other plans that unfortunately conflict with my attendance to your duel. Good luck." he said in that same distant tone before turning on his heel and briskly making his way down the corridor Susan and Lucy had disappeared through earlier that day after wishing their sister luck in her duel, his figure becoming enveloped in the shadows.

Penelope stood stock still. She felt a great weight press against her chest. She had been looking forward most to Caspian's attendance to the duel, for, petty though it was, she'd wanted the chance to be the only one fighting a dangerous fight, Narnia's fate on her blade, his eyes trained on her and solely her. She had wanted the chance to impress Caspian with her fighting skills, and the duel was the perfect opportunity; he wouldn't be fighting, just watching. But now he suddenly had other plans? She knew he was still sore about the whole idea of her fighting his uncle in her brothers, and inadvertently his, place. But she still would have liked to have his support. After all, Aslan knows this was probably their last private conversation to be had, and the duel would be Caspian's last chance to see Penelope while she still lived and breathed.

Penelope felt a hand on her shoulder and looked to see Peter standing next to her, his stance protective and his face, which held an expression of contempt, turned toward the direction Caspian had just vanished from. She knew her twin could feel the shock and hurt rolling off her in waves as if it was his own disappointment, and was appreciative of his comforting presence.

"Don't worry about him," Peter said, his tone somewhat gruff. "We can get Edmund to bring you your sword."

"What about Edmund?"

As if on cue, the younger king entered the chamber, having changed into armor of his own and was just finishing strapping leather armguards in place. Peter motioned him forward.

"We need you to bear Rhindon for Penelope upon entering the duel." he said, taking the sword from his twin and handing it to their dark haired younger brother. Edmund smirked.

"Cool," he said, true to his cheeky form.

Suddenly, a noise reached the three Pevensie's ears, soft at first but growing in strength. It was the sound of many men clapping and stomping and chanting, and they looked through the entrance to the How to see the entire Narnian army gathered along the pathway leading from the How to the stone arena, all craning their necks to catch a glimpse of the monarchs. Penelope couldn't help but grin at their enthusiasm.

"Right then. Are you ready?" Edmund asked, suddenly growing serious and sounding much older than he really was. Penelope nodded, her eyes set on the looming form of the arena which she was to duel in.

Peter suddenly had his arms around her and his face pressed into her shoulder. She was stunned for a moment, and at first did not return the hug, but then slid her arms around her brothers broad shoulders.

"Be careful, all right? You'll do splendidly, I know it, just take care of yourself and watch your back," he whispered into her ear, and she leaned up and placed a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Don't you worry, Peter. I won't let Narnia down." she replied, finding no other words to say. When they pulled apart, she saw a thin layer of tears coating his aqua blue eyes and had to look away, for she knew if she looked for one second longer she, too would break down. And kings don't cry.

With a final squeeze and pat on the shoulder for Edmund, Peter ran out to join the spectating Narnians. Edmund and Penelope waited a few moments so things wouldn't look suspicious, and Penelope then began the march into battle.

As they cleared the How and broke into the shining field in which it sat, the cheers of the Narnias died down. All around them, beasts of all varieties as diverse as the land they lived in strained around each other to better view their 'king.' Penelope walked with a cool, measured gait, the gait she had observed her brother walked with when facing the army as a whole, or Caspian, or anything dealing with politics. She glared against the sun and kept her eyes focused straight ahead, on her opponent.

Miraz was sitting in a large, intricately designed wooden chair, dressed in full armor, his helmet on his lap and a crooked smirk on his face. He was surrounded by a group of three men, one of which held his sword and another, his shield. Miraz's shield wasn't like the one Penelope had strapped to her arm. It was round and decorated with bumps and wicked looking spikes, and was carved with tiny pictures of Telmarine soldiers doing battle against various opponents. Penelope stared at the shield warily, for she had a deep, gnawing feeling it was to be used against her in the fullest sense of the term.

Penelope and Edmund were feet from the arena by now. They passed Glenstorm, who raised his huge sword in salute to the two teenagers and gave a deep nod to Penelope. The eldest of the three Bulgy Bears, who had begged Penelope into agreeing to be one of her seconds, bowed as she walked by, his large paw held in his mouth. Penelope gave him a stern look and he caught himself, sheepishly pulling it out and hiding it behind his back.

They had reached the stone arena. Penelope stopped walking and stood with her shoulders squared and chest puffed out, bravely looking into the weathered face of her adversary. Miraz got to his feet and slammed his helmet onto his head, grabbing his sword and shield from his two seconds before stepping into the arena, ready for battle.

Penelope turned to Edmund and drew Rhindon from the sheath which he held out to her. The Narnians whooped and cheered behind her. Across from her, Miraz had also drawn his sword, but to the silence of his army. For a second, Penelope felt sorry for him, but then realized all he had done and came to the conclusion he deserved it. She stepped into the arena as the Narnian cheering died down.

The two monarchs circled each other, each sizing the other up. It was stiflingly hot under the heavy armor.

"There is still time to surrender," Miraz said.

Penelope cleared her throat and spoke in a gruff voice as low as she could get it. "Well go on, then." she muttered.

Miraz sneered. "How many more must die for the throne?"

"Just one!" Penelope snarled, before lunging forward. She brought Rhindon up above her head and slashed down, and Miraz met the blow with his sword. For a moment, the two stood pressing against each other, their swords screeching as the strained against one another, but Miraz gained the advantage and pushed Penelope back. Penelope stumbled, and in that moment Miraz brought up his shield and slammed it into her chest, sending her flying backwards into a pillar. Muffled shouts raised from the Narnian side-he was not allowed to do that! But no one could do anything to stop him, and after all, it was a duel to the death. The only rule here was to kill your opponent before they killed you.

Miraz stepped forward and slashed his sword out at Penelope's neck. Penelope ducked just in time and used the pillar to launch herself at Miraz, throwing him to the ground with her own body. Miraz stumbled and fell, and as he was down Penelope advanced and brought her sword down to his chest, but he covered himself with his shield and her sword collided straight down into it. The force of the blow sent a vibration back through Rhindon and into Penelope's arm, and she hissed and drew back, clutching her weakened elbow. Miraz rather clumsily sprang to his feet and charged with a cry, jumping down to one knee at the last second and simultaneously slamming his shield into Penelope's arm and slashing his sword blunt-side forward into her legs. Penelope let out a cry as the force of the shield hitting her arm pushed her elbow joint the wrong way with a crack, and the sword knocked her legs out from beneath her, sending her crashing to the ground. As she landed, Miraz sprang up again and slashed his sword down like a pendulum, cutting her side. Penelope cried out in pain and watched as Miraz flipped his sword in his hand and brought it down with deadly accuracy at her heart, but Penelope heaved herself onto her shoulders so that her legs were sticking up in the air, recoiled against her chest, and she kicked with both of them at the same time straight into Miraz's face.

Miraz screamed in agony as Penelope's feet collided with his face, and with an almighty crunch! his nose and a few of his teeth were broken. The usurper fell back, clutching his face as blood spurted from his nose and mouth. He turned his head and spat out blood and the pieces of his front teeth, almost all of which had suffered at the feet of his adversary. He turned to one of his men and glared harshly at him, jerking his head in Penelope's direction. The man, who held a crossbow, inclined his head with an innocent expression, as if asking "Yes, your Majesty?" Miraz's glare turned deadly, but was refocused on the duel as Penelope was once again on her feet and charging at him.

She ran straight past him and span a full circle, bringing her shield into his shoulder and slashing down at his leg. Miraz bellowed in fury; the cut wasn't deep, but it was enough to fully anger him and rededicate him to the fight. He span around before Penelope could move and backhanded her, snapping her head back and causing her to stumble away from him. He ran at her and, with the assistance of his shield, pushed her backwards across the arena and into a fallen pillar, where she collapsed against it. With a growl, Miraz brought his sword down at her, aiming to decapitate her, but she pushed herself backwards and jumped away before he could. Not to be discouraged, Miraz slashed at her, causing her to jump back again, but then Penelope went on the offense and brought Rhindon up over her head and down at him, but it merely hit his shoulder armor.

Then things took a turn for the worst for the Narnians. Miraz grabbed Penelope's arm as Rhindon hit his shoulder and twisted the already injured appendage to a horrible angle, ripping the sword from her grasp and snapping the joint out of place. Penelope shrieked as her elbow snapped and hung suspended at that crooked angle, pointed towards her while the rest of her arm went away from her. Miraz sneered down at her and threw her backwards, sending her slamming to the ground. He took Rhindon and stabbed it down into her left arm, pinning it down, and stepped onto her chest. He brought his sword slashing down at her face in the same pendulum move he had done before, aiming for her throat, but instead got a little higher and caught her chin and cheek. In the process, the sword ripped through the leather strap holding her helmet to her head, and the headpiece came loose, no longer strapped down. Miraz stepped off of her and flipped his sword in his hand, preparing to end the duel and finish her off, but with great difficulty she tore Rhindon from her arm and threw it to the side, rolling from beneath his blow to safety.

Penelope rolled away and jumped to her feet, caressing her injured arm to her and watching as Miraz's sword slammed into the stone ground, bouncing off harmlessly. He wasted no time in assaulting her again, slashing at her throat. She leant away from it with lightening speed, and watched in surprise as Miraz froze, his eyes beginning to bulge from his head. His seconds all stepped forward into the arena as well, coming to flank their king and all wearing the same expression as if they had just seen a ghost. Penelope risked a glance back to the Narnians, and saw them all watching her with horrified expressions. Some of them looked angry, but most of them looked shocked and fearful. She turned to Edmund, and saw that he was frozen on the spot, his brown eyes bugging from his head and his skin paled. Peter, under the guise of a young Telmarine, was stepping toward the front of the Narnians to get a better look, his expression also horrified. The sound of horse hoofs filled the echoing silence, and Penelope saw from the corner of her eye Caspian riding in on a brown horse, Susan sitting with her arms around his waist behind him.

Penelope turned back to Miraz, unsure of what was going on, and in the same deep Peter-voice said, "Does the usurper need a respite?"

Miraz's shocked expression turned to one of fury in that instant. "No, but I am sure you would like one. That arm looks as if it needs some medical attention, and I would not advise the High Queen to fight on it, seeing as her life is so valuable to the Narnians she is fighting for."

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