*Chapter 26- Into the Battle*

Hey everyone! Thanks to all who reviewed the last chapter, I'm almost up to 100 reviews! :D Hopefully this chapter will tip the scales and get me there, in which case I shall bake each and every one of you cakes and make us all matching t-shirts! :DD

By the way, I realize you all got an alert saying I posted chapter 25 and when you went to read it it was actually an older chapter-I'm aware of this. I was messed up on the chapter numbering in the title and needed to change it. My apologies! This, however, is the new chapter :D

Anyways, thanks as always to my reviewers, my beta reader Kelsey, and C.S. Lewis for being so damn awesome.

Now enjoy.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Where's Caspian?"

The question, thrown as stingingly as a slap in the face, brought Peter to his full height at the same moment it brought out a gasp from Penelope. Peter's eyes snapped over to her as her face drained from its colour, the blue of her eyes vanishing in her ever expanding pupils. At the same moment the full horror of the blow just dealt registered on her face, her eyes rolled back and she thudded to the ground in a dead faint. Peter gave a small, choking cry and rushed over to her, gathering her up protectively into his arms. Exploding from her subconscious was a numb shock, tainted heavily with a sense of overwhelmed exhaustion. He was aware of the frantic voices of the group of archers, who were witnessing the latest drama to befall the Narnian army firsthand, and cast a quick glance up at them, taking a head count. He counted only nine, including Susan, and felt in the midst of this latest shock a momentary sense of relief. Though he would rather none of them had been around to witness the situation before he got it in hand, he was glad it was only a small number as opposed to the whole army.

Peter was aware of Susan at his side, who rather than looking down into the white face of their sister was staring accusingly up at him. "Peter, where is Caspian? And why is Penelope back? You had better start explaining yourself, and fast."

All in a moment, he felt as if he were going to drown in the crushing weight of what his actions had done, and suddenly his sister's nagging presence at his side was all but going to push him over the edge. It then appeared to him that lashing out at her was the only possible thing he could do in his defense. "Why do you automatically assume everything is my fault?" he demanded, glowering back at her.

Susan's expression faltered and her cheeks turned a delicate shade of red as the whisperings of the archers died down; all of them had heard him, and clearly they weren't about to miss the sight of their leader being put in her place by the one person who had authority over her. "Well, we see Caspian and he says he's going to do some archery training; we get to the field and there's no sight of him, and in the meantime no one has even seen head nor tail of you for Aslan knows how long; we're training and all the sudden we hear a big commotion and see you sprinting away from the Telmarine camp with Penelope hot on your heels and no sign of Caspian; you both get back here in a frenzy and Penelope acts as if it's a shock Caspian isn't here-excuse me for assuming you had something to do with the fact that she's now back and Caspian still isn't! Now, tell me what happened Peter!"

"Or what, you'll put me in time out? You aren't Mum, Susan, so quit trying to be her." Peter snarled back, extra defensive and harsh in light of her correct assumptions. He watched as his sister's face, which had been previously scowling in impatient anger, crashed to the floor, and he could tell from the look that took its place that his had been a deep blow. He could tell by the way it showed in her eyes; Susan's eyes had through the course of the last year become steely chasms which didn't so much as hint at what she was feeling.

In a flash the look was masked by one of a very penetrating anger, one that was used as a shield to the real, much more personal emotions. "Why do you think your authority is so much greater than the rest of ours? You aren't the only one here who holds the title of a monarch, why don't you start treating the rest of us like we are, too?" she barked, jumping to her feet and nearly falling over in her rage. As she turned away from the archers behind them, the expression faltered once more to reveal that deeply wounded look, but then she was charging away.

The whole scene left Peter struck by the wonderment of just how deep Susan really did store things inside her, but at the same moment he even remotely began to ponder the year since they had first left Narnia he was aware of a new presence at his side. Slowly turning his head up, he was struck by an entirely new onset of emotions as he found himself looking into Iridescent's strikingly beautiful face, and upon seeing the quiver of arrows on her back realized she must have been out for some archery training..meaning she had just seen that whole scene take place. Peter turned away in shame, feeling that because she was Penelope's Patronus she would for some reason be angry at him for the loss of Caspian.

His fears were affirmed in the stern tone with which she addressed him. "Was all that really necessary?" she asked, and he could feel her scorching lavender eyes burning into the back of his head. Defensive anger, much like that with which he had addressed Susan, bubbled in his chest again, but before he could deliver a stinging reply she cut him off. "And is that how you plan on reacting when the army asks what happens? Because they're going to ask. Susan was right to ask you what happened, Peter, and you know it. Now you can sit here and mope all the livelong day, or you can get off your ass and explain what the bloody hell is going on to the rest of us so we can do something."

By this time, more of the Narnians had gathered around, no doubt because of the ruckus which had been made and because of the incredulously miraculous sight of Penelope, returned a day before planned. Peter took a moment to let his anger die down and to get over his ego, so that he could act on Iridescent's words and take charge of the situation he had ultimately caused. Grasping Penelope's unconscious body in his arms, he clambered to his feet and with set jaw raised his voice to address his army.

"Send word to everyone through the How to meet in the Chamber of Aslan's Sacrifice. We must prepare for battle."

xxxxxxxx

The sound of metal clanking loudly many people's voices rising in a tidal wave of furious roaring brought Penelope to. She opened her eyes slowly and found herself looking upon the shadowed ceiling of a low lit cave. She became aware of a warm hand gripping her own at the same time she realized her head was laying in someone's lap, their long fingers brushing through her hair. She looked to see whose hand clasped her own, saw a shimmer of light blue hair; Iridescent. Fleetingly, she wondered how in the world she had gotten back to the How, but her train of thoughts were broken off as the sounds of people shouting grew louder.

Iridescent let out a small gasp as she noticed Penelope's now open eyes, and at once she swooped upon her like a bird of prey. She was quickly and urgently asking if she was alright, and Penelope nodded without really paying attention as she sat up. Her head swam threateningly as black spots danced before her eyes, her vision weaving in and out of focus. It took a moment before the sickening sensations left her body, and she turned to the elf.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Peter's called a meeting of the whole army," Iridescent replied. "They're going over the battle plan."

At the mention of her brother, the memories of the mornings events came flooding back to her. She let out a pain-filled gasp, realizing that Caspian was gone at the same time she figured out why she was where she was.

"I fainted, didn't I? How long have I been out?" she asked, feeling her cheeks flush slightly. Surely people would be able to guess that she had feelings for Caspian after a display so grand as fainting...

"Nothing too terrible, maybe twenty minutes? But you were exhausted, it's good you managed to get some sleep before the madness your brother is planning breaks out."

Penelope automatically felt defensive for her brother, but seeing as she did not know what was going on she refrained from saying anything. Instead, she glanced around the room in search of him. She found that she was in the Chamber of Aslan's Sacrifice, and Narnians were packed in all corners of the room, heaving as one giant swell as they all tried to move at once. She noticed that the majority of them wore their battle armor and had their weapons slung across their backs, their faces creased with grim determination.

"Where is everyone?" Penelope asked, seeing no sign of Peter or her other siblings.

"All rammed up each other's asses, trying to make sure they know what the hell they're supposed to be doing right now," Iridescent replied bitterly. Penelope shot her a stern glance at her use of language, but saw that the elf was rapidly pinching the tips of her ears; a habit Penelope had over the years come to recognize as one of severe anxiety. Instead of rebutting her, she shrugged it off, knowing that Iridescent tended to curse like a sailor when she was upset. She felt her own calm aura shatter at the sight of her guardian's loss of composure.

"Well I can see that much," she replied, opting to keep the tone light. "I meant where are my siblings?"

Iridescent shrugged, still plucking at her pointed ears. "Off shoved up someone else's ass. Peter's probably trying to rally the troops, Susan's probably with the archers, Edmund's probably off being Edmund, and Aslan knows where Lucy is."

Penelope's blood turned to ice and her heart dropped heavily into her stomach. She had very nearly forgot about her youngest sister during the course of her captivity. "What do you think has happened to her?"

Iridescent looked surprisingly unconcerned. "I'm sure she's fine. She probably found somewhere to stay during the course of these past few days."

Anger sparked in Penelope at how unworried Iridescent was, and perhaps for the first time in her life she found she challenged what she was saying. "How could she possibly be fine? She's a little girl, she has no way of taking care of herself. How are you not remotely worried about her?"

Iridescent arched a delicate eyebrow. "How were you able to survive for a thousand years when you were only a baby? I believe Aslan is looking out for her. Besides, I'm sure we would have heard all about it if the Telmarines had killed her. You just have to trust Aslan."

Penelope felt abashed, realizing that Iridescent was probably right. "Sorry, I'm just.. stressed. This is all a lot to take in all the sudden."

"S'okay. Just don't turn in to an overprotective prat like your brother. Lucy is stronger than she looks, she can take care of herself. You all need to start realizing that and respect her more."

Penelope's eyes clouded over as the truth of Iridescent's words settled in her mind. Lucy had grown up once before, and had ruled a country when she was still but a child. She was, in many ways, more adept at taking care of herself than Penelope herself. Though still the youngest, she was in no way the baby of the family anymore. Penelope made a mental note to check herself on her treatment of Lucy, but in the meantime focused on Iridescent, who was still pinching her ears. The pointed tips were now a violent shade of red.

"Iridescent, if you pinch them much harder than they'll be permanently rolled in," she exclaimed, swatting at Iridescent's eager fingers.

Iridescent smacked Penelope back, but before the fight could escalate Peter appeared before them. "Penny, you're awake!"

Penelope shot Iridescent one last dirty look, and as she turned to converse with her twin, the elf scampered off into the crowd. "Yeah.. Look, about me fainting-"

Peter cut her off. "It's alright, you'd had an eventful day. I'm just glad that you're back and alright."

He smiled at her, and she found she was smiling back. Warmth radiated between the twins, and for a few moments they simply stood enjoying each other's company. After a moment, Peter spoke again.

"Now the only problem is-"

"Caspian?" Penelope finished for him.

"And the entire Telmarine army." Peter nodded, his face mirroring her own grim expression. The two twins stared at each other for a moment, silently communicating their feelings of understanding: This was it. This was what their weeks of preparation was going to come down to. The Narnians could no longer hide and hope that they could build their skill and numbers, praying to an unresponsive Aslan that the Telmarines would just hold off a few days more. Their prince had been captured, and the Telmarines were at their front door. Finally, those who died during the night raid were going to be avenged. "We're going to go with the original battle plan, but since Caspian isn't here we had to change a few things around."

Penelope's heart gave a small twinge at the mention of Caspian's absence, but Peter carried on relentlessly. "Edmund is going to lead the troops under ground in Caspian's place, but after he leads the troops out of the ground he'd going to join the flyers and go on gryphon to try and find Caspian. I'll still be at the head of the army above ground, and Susan's still going to be leading the archers. Iridescent's still going to be doing her own thing, keeping watch for Lucy. I want to put you up with Susan, with the archers."

"Will I get to come down and fight with everyone else?" Penelope demanded immediately, seeing right away why Peter had her put up there.

Peter hesitated, his blue eyes clouded. "I would prefer you not to.. It'll be better to have you up above where you can pick people off easily, with Susan. Besides, you're tired from the Telmarine camp, your fighting skills may not be quite up to par, and Miraz may be trying to send men after you, and anyways-"

"Alright, alright, I get it. I'll stay on the ledge." said Penelope, her intentions really only to shut Peter up. He looked immensely relieved, and gave her a weary smile.

"Thanks, Penny," he said, rubbing her on the shoulder. "Now if only I could get Edmund to agree quite so easily.."

"You worry too much," Penelope said in complete seriousness despite her small smile. "About all of us. We can all take care of ourselves, it's not always up to you, you know."

Peter looked at her contemplatively for a moment, then merely shrugged it off. "I can't help it. Obsessive older brother syndrome, is what Edmund calls it. You'd understand if you were the oldest of four..now five."

"Understandable, I suppose. I can barely take care of myself-it took seven Narnians total to raise me-much less my siblings. But still, I'm the oldest of four siblings, and you don't see me constantly bearing down on them and their business.. maybe try to trust them just a little?"

Peter gave her a cold glare, and she knew that she had crossed a line. "This isn't a matter of trust, Penelope. It's life or death here, and I'm not about to just let you all do whatever it is you want during the middle of a war and have you wind up dead just to prove that I trust you. Now please, may we drop the subject?"

Slightly peeved, but knowing that to try and press the matter would not end well, Penelope huffed and let the topic drop. A cold silence passed between the two, and the instant Penelope was not talking, her mind was filled with Caspian. Dread settled like a boulder in her stomach as she recalled his handsome face, his soothing voice, and the danger he was surely facing at the moment.

"Peter, what are we going to do about Caspian?" she asked, her voice barely rising above a whisper. She felt her cheeks redden as her brother turned to look at her full on, his expression sour and calculating.

Before Peter could answer, Edmund approached the two, followed closely by Susan and Iridescent. "The Telmarines are leaving the woods, and it looks like they're bringing the whole army."

Peter nodded, quickly slipping into his High King form. "Edmund, gather the troops who will go underground and prepare to ride. Susan, get the archers together and get out on the ledge. Iridescent, take Penelope and get her changed into her other armor."

"Why can't I just wear this?" Penelope asked, flabbergasted Peter was thinking about things such as fashion at a time like this.

"Because people will think you're me and try and attack you, now go quickly!"

He ran off to bark orders at the other troops as he spoke, thus missing the eye roll exchanged between Iridescent and Penelope. The two charged off for Penelope's quarters, where she hastily changed in to her dress from the night raid. Iridescent was uncharacteristically silent the whole time, but Penelope barely noticed past the anger at not knowing a definite plan on Caspian's rescue that coursed through her. It occurred to her, as she slung a fresh quiver of arrows over her back and ran to join Susan at the ledge, that she would need to improvise a plan for herself.

With that fact sitting firmly in a corner of her mind, she took her place beside Susan at the head of the archers. Penelope's gaze swept the field, which was now completely altered in light of the impending battle. In front of the How, she could see hundreds of Narnians standing grouped together, their armor and weapons flashing in the sun. Further ahead in the stone arena stood Peter, with Edmund next to him on horseback. Hanging a little ways back from the pair stood Glenstorm, his flanks covered in armor and his huge sword slung across his back. Though the Narnians that stood behind the three were a formidable group, they represented only about half of the army; the rest were below ground, waiting for the signal that the Telmarines were charging.

Looking across the field, Penelope felt her heart give a nervous little tremor. Standing a fair distance away from the Narnians was a sea of glimmering armor, thousands of faceless soldiers waiting for the signal from their leader. At the head of the army was the cavalry, which looked to be about the same size as the Narnian army waiting above ground. Behind them stood an even greater force of foot soldiers, who appeared to be about three times as numerous as the entire Narnian army. Set at intervals among the foot soldiers were huge catapults and other war machines of Telmarine design.

Penelope and Susan exchanged a grim look, both feeling the same sense of dread and hopelessness. The look in Susan's eyes said that the younger of the Pevensie sisters' confidence in a Narnian victory was slowly waning. Seeing the look in a much more experienced warrior's eyes only served to crush Penelope's own confidence, but she decided that it would be better if she kept optimistic.

The two sisters looked away from each other in time to see the Telmarines dividing into two sections, clearing a pathway down the middle. From the back of this pathway rode three horsed figures, and from the extravagance of their armor and the cockiness of their manners, Penelope guessed they were Miraz, Glozelle, and Sopespian. As the three leaders took their places at the head of their army, a twinge of panic filled her; there was no sign of Caspian.

There was a moment when the two armies stared across the field at each other, each sizing the other up. Silence seemed to grip all of Narnia as both sides waited for the other to make the first move, but for the Narnians, the wait would be indefinite: their plan could only take place if the Telmarines charged first. After a few more moments, a nod was exchanged between the leaders, and all around them Telmarine banners were raised high. Every Narnian in the army held their breath as a horn was blown, and the Telmarine cavalry charged; this was it.

From where he stood at the front of the stone arena, Edmund yanked his horses bridle, turning hard and charging for the How. At the same moment he and Glenstorm cleared the entryway, Susan gave her first order to the troops, feeling once again like the empowered queen she had been during the Golden Age.

"Archers, to the ready!" she barked, grabbing her bow and stringing an arrow. Penelope followed suit, her heart hammering in her chest as she watched the Telmarine army ride closer, unexpectedly approaching the waiting trap. But while she was focusing on the charging cavalry, she was paying no attention to the army behind them, where the catapults were being loaded and launched. She was only aware that they were being used as the first boulder slammed into the earth below them, shaking the archers where they stood. Penelope and the others were shaken at the unexpected force of the blow, but she managed to remain standing. She glanced down to see a few Narnians scrambling away from a dusty crater in the ground where it had hit, while a few less lucky men lay crushed. Rage filled Penelope at the first loss of Narnian lives.

From deep below the ground came the faintest sound of a horn being blown; the first signal. Up where he stood at the front of the stone arena, Peter whipped his sword out, waiting. Even from where she stood on the ledge, Penelope could sense the cool determination coursing through him as he faced the oncoming army.

"Take your aim!" Susan's shout came from Penelope's side, and the air was filled with the straining of bows they were pulled taught. Penelope lifted her own bow high into the air, her arrow parallel with her sister's as she took aim for a Telmarine riding in the front of the group.

"Stay with 'em!" Trumpkin barked, as another projectile launched from the Telmarines shook the archers where they stood.

A few moments passed, and the Telmarine army were nearly upon the stone arena where Peter stood. The blond king's form shook with the power of his shout as he issued his command. "Get ready!"

Though to the Telmarines nothing had happened, the Narnians could all tell their plan was a success. Just feet before the oncoming cavalry, a huge oval had formed in the ground from where part of it was caving in; known to the Narnians because they had been told what to look for. In an instant, the oblivious Telmarines were upon the weakened ground, which began crumbling under the first row of men. These first men realized what was happening at the same moment the rest of their comrades charged onto the pit, and before any of them could react, the ground caved in. The Telmarines' horses collapsed from beneath them, and with startled yelps nearly the entire cavalry went in to the pit. Before they could realize what had happened or regroup themselves, Susan's strong voice rang through the air.

"Now!"

Penelope, Susan, and the rest of the archers released their arrows. The archers watched in mesmerized silence as their arrows soared like a flock of birds through the air, arcing gracefully down and hammering into the Telmarines below. At the same moment Peter raised his sword and lead the army out to meet the surviving Telmarines, two small holes appeared in the ground by the pit. A swarm of Narnians, lead by Edmund and Glenstorm, charged out from below the ground, mixing together with Peter's troops and closing in on the floundering Telmarines.

Arrows flew, swords clashed, and men fell as the Narnians crushed the remaining Telmarine cavalry. A renewed vigor filled the Narnians as they finally took a stand against the Telmarines, and were seemingly gaining the upper hand. It was with the smallest sense of oncoming victory that Penelope notched her arrows, letting them fly into the fray below. But at the same moment Penelope fired another arrow, a boulder launched from the Telmarine catapult hit much closer to the How than any of the others, shaking the archers and nearly knocking a dwarf off the ledge. Penelope barely managed to catch herself, while Susan gave a small cry as she toppled over, landing hard on her backside.

"Those catapults are proving to be a serious problem," she grumbled as Penelope and Trumpkin pulled her to her feet. Penelope glanced across the field to where the catapults stood, tall and imposing as they launched yet another volley of boulders. But while they definitely proved a threat, there was something else that caught her eye that would prove to be far more detrimental to the Narnians.

The foot soldiers of the Telmarine army were slowly surging forward, making their way to where the Narnian army stood struggling with the remaining cavalry. Thousands of them surged forward, while the Narnians remained oblivious. In the middle of the fray stood Edmund, swinging two swords at a group of Telmarines who had him surrounded. Penelope felt another surge of panic, for Edmund was supposed to have led the gryphon troop to find Caspian by that point. Her eyes turned to sweep the Telmarine army once again, and she found that only one of the three leaders remained back with the army. Angered at Miraz's cowardice, Penelope continued to comb through the army, until with a jolt, her gaze froze on a most peculiar sight.

Beside one of the catapults, there was a troop of five soldiers, standing in a defensive semicircle with crossbows in their hands. But it wasn't the soldiers that interested Penelope; it was what stood trapped behind them. A sixth Telmarine stood in the middle of the soldiers, wearing armor but apparently unarmed. His hands were bound to the catapult, and his form was rocked with each volley of boulders it launched. But even from here, Penelope could see the raw fury etched across his handsome face, battered and bruised though it currently was.

Caspian.

Penelope let out a tiny gasp as she took in the bruises on his face. Anger boiled in her stomach and threatened to consume her, but she knew that should she fully unleash her rage, she would lose control and possibly fail her plan. And so she reigned in her fury, unwillingly bottling it up in a disguise of indifference as she slowly began to creep to the back of the ledge. She waited for the moment when both Susan and Trumpkin had their bows raised to fire, and in that instant she darted into the How, sprinting down the tunnel at full speed. When she arrived to the entrance chamber, however, she veered to the right, running for the tunnel Susan and Lucy had rode out of when trying to find Aslan. A small flitting of fear went through her mind as she thought of Lucy, who had still not been heard from, but she pushed those thoughts out of the way as she continued into the forest.

Ducking low to remain hidden by the underbrush, Penelope sprinted along the edge of the forest, keeping the ongoing battle in her line of sight the whole while. She held tightly to her bow as she made her way through the forest, drawing closer to Caspian with each step she took.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Review if you're out there, please! I want my hundred reviews, dangit! xD

Oh yeah! There's a reference pic of what I imagined Iridescent looking like on my profile. Check it out!