Disclaimer: I do not own The Chronicles of Narnia. Thank C.S. Lewis for that one!!! :)

Hey everyone!! Sorry I was kind of late updating this... some things came up and I just couldn't find the time to post it and make it as interesting as possible for you to read! :P Thanks again to my reviewers and to those of you that have stuck with this story but haven't reviewed yet. I'm glad you're keeping up with it!!! Well, I won't keep you waiting any longer... here is chapter 8!!!

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Chapter 8: For Lucy

I held Rhindon out protectively in front of me, my breathing increasing heavily due to the adrenaline rush. To my surprise, no one had attacked us. No one had even seemed affected, let alone taken aback by our unprompted arrival. I felt the eyes of all the men pierce into my skin, and then a low chuckle escaped one of their lips.

"High King Peter, Queen Susan, King Edmund…" came the mysterious voice. A dark-skinned Calormene with an even darker colored beard stepped forward. "We were beginning to wonder when you all would 'grace' us with your presence," he said, his accent heavy. There was something in his tone that sounded excessively sinister, almost as if he was spitting out venom as well as his words.

"Give us our sister," I demanded. I made it short and to the point; I wasn't playing around with so much at stake. The man grinned.

"You see, I just can't do that. Lucy has become very… useful," he stated. He began rubbing his coarse hands together, as if he was plotting something in his twisted mind.

"And how would that be?" Edmund shot back, raising an eyebrow.

"You see, little king,"- I heard Edmund give a slight snarl- "if it wasn't for us finding your sister in her, let's say, 'predicament,' then it wouldn't have lured the three of you here. Lucy is still under her trance; she has been very good to us. I'm just afraid we can't let you have her. We've grown very… attached to her staying with us," he retorted, carefully choosing his words. A look of contentment filled his features, making him smile from ear to ear. I was on the brink of losing it.

"Oh hang it all! Just give us our sister!" I demanded once again. The sick man chuckled. He was clearly gaining enjoyment from our lengthening dispute.

"Don't think you'll get her back that easily, King Peter. She tried to kill you, remember? I was there, behind you in the trees. Don't think I didn't see the resentment in her actions. You mean nothing to her anymore… none of you do," His words were spoken slowly, as if he desired for them to sink into our thoughts, and then into our very souls. His hardened eyes stared at each of us, trying to place themselves inside our heads to impair our proper judgment. It wouldn't work on me. I knew the real Lucy was in there somewhere; we just had to overturn the curse that had caught her in its grasp. I was suddenly forced out of my thoughts as a man charged at me. My sword met his just before he could cut my arm. And then our war had begun.

The man- a Telmarine- and I stood en garde, each waiting for the other to strike. But I wasn't going to stand around and linger. Rhindon and the man barely became acquainted before he would speak no more. Three men attacked me this time. I hardly had a moment to react as their swords and scimitars plunged towards different parts of my body. I back stepped, spun, and missed each blow. I slashed, aiming for the thigh area. Two of the three fell, never to rise up again. The other, though, swung at me, planning to cut my neck. I purposely fell to the ground and rolled to miss the attempt. I shot Rhindon up, piercing the man in his stomach. I tumbled backwards so the man wouldn't fall on top of me. I quickly hopped to my feet, entirely forgetting about my injured ribs.

"Susan!" I heard Edmund scream. My attention turned fully to my sister. She was having trouble re-stringing an arrow as the men surrounded her. I ran to her aid, catching the men behind her off guard. Rhindon took care of them, but the men who had been antagonizing Susan had now turned to face me. One of the Calormene's scimitars came dangerously close to my head. Our weapons made a sharp clanging sound as they struck each other. I slid Rhindon off of his blade, spun it in my hand, and stabbed him in the side, all in less than two seconds. I then saw a man in my peripheral vision; he was down before the thought had registered that I hit him.

Death was a terrible thing, and I hated being the provider of so much destruction. Taking a human life had never been something I would have pondered upon back in England… I would have thought myself mad if even a trace of the horrid thoughts crept into my mind. But now, here in Narnia, I was taking a life as if it was nothing simpler than wiping dust from a table… just an effortless movement of my hand. It was a hard thing to wrap my mind around. But it must be done; it was for Lucy, and in the long run, for Narnia.

I had no time to breathe, man after man kept attacking me. It was almost as if they were coming out of nowhere. Edmund and Susan were battling two each, and I was taking on three. My siblings and I were the most skilled contenders here, but I couldn't say that the others weren't presenting a good match. I lost my focus for a fraction of a second, and then I felt my left shoulder beginning to sting. A Telmarine's sword had grazed the area; he was the first of the three to go down. The other two weren't much harder to handle.

I glanced at my surroundings; there were only a few men left. Thank you, Aslan, for giving us the strength to last this long, I thought. I charged at one of them and he was gone within seconds. I wiped my brow with my left arm and winced as my shoulder slightly burned. I shook it off and ran towards the other soldiers. One Edmund was handling-very well, I might add-and the other met me halfway. He jabbed at me, but I lunged at him first, sending him toppling to the ground with Rhindon leaving a deep red stain in his side. I took in a deep breath, but then heard a blood-piercing scream. My eyes shot to Lucy. The dark-featured Calormene who first spoke was roughly holding her by the arm, aiming his curved blade at her neck.

"Unhand her!" I yelled. Tears were streaming down her face and the man was laughing… laughing at my sisters' despair. I felt my grip on Rhindon become unbelievably tight, my knuckles turning white as my jaw clenched from sheer anger. He turned his focus to me.

"Ah, Peter, do you really think she'll take any charity from you? She wants you dead, remember?" he said. Malice was written harshly in his words.

"I don't care! Let her go!" I screamed. If he dared hurt her… I couldn't even finish the thought. Instead I ran towards him, Rhindon close at hand. He shot out his blade and jabbed at my side, never letting go of Lucy. Luckily, though, the scimitar was now away from her body. I hopped back, missing the cut by a mere inch. He then swiped at my feet, but I jumped and avoided the slicing. I forced Rhindon at him. He turned and missed. My heart almost stopped. I almost hit Lucy- my own sister! - with my most prized possession. The man chuckled darkly.

"Ah, is Queen Lucy getting in your way? I can arrange to fix that," he stated, slamming Lucy hard into a wall. Her body went limp and she slid down, not getting back up. I could feel my blood boiling and my adrenaline rushing. He would pay for that; the cost would be his life. I let out a battle cry as I brought Rhindon down just above the Calormene's head. He spun away, missing my blow. But I didn't care; I would try again and again until I succeeded. I kept hearing his laugh playing over in my head as I desperately swung at him. He was giving out as many blows as I. He was the hardest opponent I had faced all day. I had never wanted anyone dead more than I had wanted this repulsive man to be. Aslan, forgive me for my unpleasant thoughts, I prayed. Suddenly I heard Susan shriek.

No, nothing can happen to her, either! I thought frantically. Out of instinct I turned in her direction for a fraction of a second, and that was all it took. Before I knew it, fire was racing up my side. I grasped it and realized my hand was wet… with my blood. He must have stabbed me, I thought. He began laughing again, this time more powerfully. The sound intensified in my ears as the other noises faded away. I could feel the energy draining from my body. With what strength I had left, I took a chance and flung out Rhindon. Unfortunately I only scraped his upper leg. The pain forced me to my knees. My sight was sliding in and out of focus.

"Peter!" came Edmund's voice. I could barely hear it. I felt myself begin to sink down as the seconds passed. The last thing I saw before the darkness engulfed me was the Calormene falling, Edmund's sword in his stomach.

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A/N: So, what do you think of what happened??? I'm curious to see what you guys will say. Sorry about the length... it's a bit shorter than the previous chapters. The next one will be longer, though, I promise! Well, if I don't update beforehand, have an awesome Halloween!!! Please review! :)