Author's Note: Here's chapter eleven! I hope you guys like it. It wasn't easy to write... You'll see why... The next three or four chapters will be filled with a few scenes that made me cry...

Anyways, I'm just updating because a certain reviewer *cough* Elizabeth Zara *cough* is practically bouncing about the place with excitement... XD

Song for this chapter: Final Destination by Within Temptation

Deep in the forest, the Narnians, led by Peter and Caspian, walked through the dense trees. Trufflehunter looked ahead at the royals and then turned to Trumpkin.

"So, what are they like?" Trufflehunter asked eagerly. Trumpkin grumbled under his breath.

"Complainers...Stubborn as mules in the morning, especially the redhead." Trumpkin muttered somewhat darkly.

"You're a redhead." Nikabrik snorted, rolling his eyes. "So I take it you like them then?"

"Well enough." Trumpkin sighed.

At the front of the group, the five royals were deep in their own conversations. Prince Caspian watched in amusement as Ari and Edmund bickered lightly with each other. It was all in good nature though. Edmund would throw a sarcastic comment, and Ari would gleefully throw a quip back immediately. He noticed how Peter kept a careful hand on his sword at all times, watching out for anything that might threaten their family. Susan and Lucy talked quietly, so it was hard for him to hear.

They walked through the dense forest until they saw a clearing up ahead. The light from the sun was nearly blinding as they stepped out of the forest. In the distance, across a giant plain, stood what was known as Aslan's how. It was a giant rock and earth structure that towered above everything around it. It had one solitary entrance on the bottom level, and several leading to ledges high above where lookouts could be posted.

Everyone paused for a moment, just taking everything in. Then without a backwards glance, Ari raced into the sunlight, flinging her head back. Susan and Lucy soon followed her, dancing in the sunlight, having a carefree moments, and for once being the teenage girls that they were. Edmund ran forward and grabbed Ari by the waist, twirling her around so that her black dress flew out around her. They fell into the grass laughing like idiots. Ari smiled lovingly at Edmund before she stood up.

Everyone looked back over at the monument and began a slow walk towards it. As they neared, they could make out Centaurs standing on either side of the entrance. They had their swords raised in a silent salute. Caspian slowed and let the kings and queens of old go first. Lucy smiled at a young centaur who was holding his sword too low. The centaur on his right pushed the sword up and smiled down at the royals.

They entered the how and saw hundreds of Narnian soldiers hard at work making weapons. Torches lit the chamber. The smell of sweat, hot metal, and smoldering ashes filled the air. Ari blanched and raced to the nearest barrel, spewing what little breakfast she had earlier that day. Edmund rushed over to her, and held her hair back as she vomited the contents of her stomach. Susan and Lucy sent concerned looks at the redhead.

Wiping her face on her sleeve, Ari grimaced. "I'm fine."

"No you're not." Edmund insisted.

"Ed, don't worry about me. You know I'm prone to getting sick, as are you." Ari said, rolling her eyes.

"Fine. If I get sick, I'm blaming you." Edmund joked, wrapping an arm around her. They walked over to the rest of the group where Caspian was telling them about the forges.

"It may not be what you are used to, but it is defensible." Caspian said, referring to the How.

"Peter, you may want to see this." Susan said from down a corridor. The Pevensies, each carrying torches, walked over to where Susan was. She held up her torch to the wall, illuminating several carvings. Each of them was a picture of something from during their reign during the golden age. There was one of all five of them riding horses across the open fields.

"It's us." Susan said, pressing her fingers to a carving of herself.

"What is this place?" Lucy asked Caspian.

"You mean you don't know?" Caspian said. When no one made to speak, he picked a torch off of the wall and led them down the dark tunnel. At the end, he lit a fire in a small pit, and it spread around the room, revealing carvings of Narnians and Aslan...and the cracked Stone Table. Lucy let out a gasp. Lucy looked at the large carving of Aslan on the furthest wall and walked towards it slowly. She turned back to her siblings and Caspian.

"He must know what he's doing."

"I think it's up to us now." Peter said coldly, resentment clear in his voice. Lucy frowned and looked back to the carving of Aslan.

=XxX=

Three hours and a good meal later, Ari and Edmund sat on one of the ledges overlooking the field. Ari was quiet, which was strange for her. Edmund didn't bother her, because he knew that when she had something on her mind that it would take only time for her to reveal it. She sighed and snuggled close to Edmund.

"Edmund, do you think it's safe to go for a short ride?" Ari asked after several minutes as she looked longingly into the distance. "It's been too long since I've ridden, and I know you're dying to get back into the saddle."

"I suppose we could go for a just a little while." Edmund said, smiling at the thought of being able to ride a horse again. "I'll go ask Caspian if he has a horse somewhere that we can use."

Fifteen minutes after Edmund had set out searching for a horse, the two set out on a ride across the open field. They rode into the woods just enough so that they could still see the How through the trees. Edmund slowed the horse down to a walk. Ari slid off the horse and went to sit down on the root of a nearby tree that was very large.

"I miss it, don't you?" She asked.

"Miss how things were before we went back to England?" He asked. "Yes."

"I miss not having to hide anything."

"Oh, don't say that. You know Narnia had plenty of secrets." Edmund joked, poking her in the ribs.

"Plenty of secrets that had to be kept as secrets." Ari said, sighing. "And it was our job." Then she fell silent. Edmund looked off into the trees.

"Ari, you have something on your mind. Spit it out."

"Edmund, I brought you out here to tell you something." Then she looked around, as if the trees would hear her. Then she leaned in and whispered something barely audible into his ear. Edmund's eyes widened as if from shock. Then Ari's eyes widened as well, but at something in the distance behind Edmund.

"Down!" She screamed, pushing Edmund's head down just as an arrow whizzed by, barely missing them.

"No!" Edmund yelled as the first soldier lunged at his wife. She drew her knife and stabbed, causing blood to spurt from the now dead soldier's neck. They were completely surrounded in merely seconds.

Edmund drew his sword in a quick, fluid motion, and began slashing and hacking away at the Telmarine solders. There were far too many for only two people to handle alone, and the pair were tiring quickly. As soon as one was finished off, another two seemed to pop out of nowhere.

Edmund was on autopilot, sinking into the familiar feeling of being in combat. Behind him, Ari screamed in pain as her arm was slashed open by a sword that she didn't have time to avoid. The knife flew from her hand and it stuck into the neck of a soldier that was about to swing his sword at Edmund's neck. He didn't even see the attack coming. She ran forward and grabbed the knife, but she was too slow. A soldier on horseback grabbed her arm and roughly pulled her up onto his horse. She let out a scream and began to struggle, kicking and flailing her arms wildly.

Edmund's concentration broke as he heard her bloodcurdling scream just before she lost consciousness as she was hit over the head with the butt of the soldier's sword. He barely had time to blink before he was sent barreling back as he was kicked in the chest and into a tree. The rough bark scraped at his face and left a gash on the left side. He sent a half-crazed look at Ari's limp body hanging off of the horse as the soldier rode into the woods. He saw another flash of her hair and then she was out of sight. The rest of the soldiers disregarded him and rode after the one with Ariana. That was the last thing he remembered before he collapsed and fell to the ground with a thud. Out of sorrow, or out of exhaustion he did not know.

When Edmund woke again his head throbbed in pain. Ari was gone. In her place was a note. A ransom note. Many thoughts flashed through his mind, but by far the strongest were Why her? Why Now? Why not me? He nearly flew into a blinding rage. His eyes stung with tears that threatened to spill over and the fury filling him. As soon as he was absolutely sure that his legs could carry him, he shakily stood up and moved as fast as he could towards Aslan's How.

Author's Note: So... She's gone. But why? And what did she tell him? What is Edmund going to do about it? Find out in the next chapter! :D (Oh, just to let you know, there is going to be a MAJOR cliffhanger at the end of the next chapter...)