Chapter Thirteen
We reached the cliffs at noon. Quickly, we placed each troop at the proper position for battle. I was at the front, on Peter's right. Fireheart, the centaur general, was on his left. I was mounted on Anduril, of course, while Peter was mounted on another unicorn. He was riding Xenophon, who happened to be Anduril's brother. We would lead the charge. Edmund was in charge of the archers on the cliffs behind us. I gulped, staring directly ahead of us where the Witch's army was supposed to appear. My leather clad hands were sweaty, and I fidgeted as we waited. Everything was silent.
The same griffon that had scouted before alighted on the ground next to us.
"Your Highness," he panted. "They come in numbers far greater than our own." Fireheart, still looking straight ahead, answered, "Numbers do not win a battle." Peter sighed. "But I bet they sure do help." We waited for several more minutes and then we saw a dark figure appear on the small, distant hill. I recognized it as the Minotaur who was acting as general for the enemy. He raised his great bull head and let out a bellow. Then two white spots appeared next to him, and I saw that they were polar bears pulling the Witch's chariot. And there she stood, with the golden hair of Aslan's mane made into a robe that she now wore. I gritted my teeth, feeling the hatred and anger at her boil up within me. Fear was gone now, replaced with these new emotions. She had taken Rooner and now she had killed Aslan. I gripped my spear tightly; ready to plunge it through the heart of the enemy.
A dark line fanned out on either side of the chariot like a stain. Ghoulish figures of Minotaurs, wolves, hags, witches, and many others that I had no name for. Peter drew a shaky breath, and then raised his sword. It flashed in the strong sunlight, and he pointed it forward. The griffon beat its wings and rose off the ground. I turned and looked at the cliffs. Suddenly, the sky began to darken with the sight of hundreds of griffons soaring above us, each clutching a huge stone in their talons. They flew at the enemy, and the Witch's army charged. Then the boulders dropped from their grips, plummeting toward the ground. They smashed into the enemy, taking out many of them, reminding me of the air raids back in England when bombs would be dropped. It appeared to make a dent in their numbers at first. But then the monsters retaliated, letting their arrows fly toward the sky. My stomach flopped at the sight of a few of the griffons falling. Several naked, bat-like things flew up into the air to meet the griffons, and latched onto them. They were locked into an airborne battle. I could see Peter wincing, and then he looked at Fireheart. He nodded, and Peter raised his sword again. Xenophon rose into a rear, pawing the air with his silvery hooves. I leaned forward and spoke to Andy softly. "Ready for this? Take care of me, okay? But if I tell you to leave me behind, you have to do it." I patted his neck softly as he snorted. Peter raised his sword and shouted, "For Narnia and for Aslan!" And there was a collective cheer behind us. And then we charged.
I leaned forward over Andy's neck as we thundered down the hill and across the plain to meet the enemy. I was deafened by the pounding of hooves; horse, centaur, and faun. Several Cheetahs and Leopards and other large predators pushed out in front of us. The army behind me lowered their spears, the small banners on the end shining red and gold in the sunlight. I raised my left hand and knocked my visor down over my face. And then both armies collided.
There was the sound if snarling cats and wolves. The sickening crunch of bone. Spears flew out on all sides of me. They pierced the bodies of the monsters before us, and they let out agonized screams and cries and groans. Andy weaved around the falling bodies, some Narnian. I didn't let myself think. I let my instincts take over completely. Dodge, weave, duck, block. Some kind of creature flung itself at me. My spear went through its body with a sickening impact. It roared and fell back. I yanked out my sword and brandished it at the enemy. A wolf leaped at my throat, snarling. I smashed the hilt of my sword into its forehead and it yelped, falling down under Andy's hooves. I looked wildly around for Peter and saw him fighting a Minotaur. The creature bellowed and roared as Peter hacked away at it.
Fireheart appeared and with an arc of his swords, the monster dropped. Peter turned and gave the signal for the archers on the cliffs with Edmund to shoot. Within seconds the sky was raining arrows. Everything was total chaos and I lost sight of my king again as another creature attacked me from behind, knocking me from Anduril. I hit the ground hard and rolled away, shielding my head like I practiced. I leaped to my feet, but found that the unicorn was raised on his hind legs, striking out at the thing fiercely, stabbing it through the middle with his long spiral horn. A small goblin-like thing leaped onto his back and sunk its fangs into his withers. I was distracted by another one leaping at my face. I can't see anything with this damn helmet on! I yanked it off, letting my hair fall down in a single long, thick golden braid. I slashed the thing through its abdomen and turned as more kept on piling up on us.
I couldn't keep it up. They just kept coming, and we were getting pushed back farther and farther. My breathing was heavy and sweat ran down my face into my eyes, making them burn. Andy was still next to me, fighting as my equal against the onslaught. Then Peter shouted, "Turn back! Retreat!" from somewhere surprisingly nearby. I spotted him with the centaur and Xenophon. "Go, Anduril! Get back with them!" I scream as another wolf snapped its jaws and latched onto my arm. The beast pulled me down, and I was sure I was done for. I closed my eyes, waiting for it to go for my throat, for it all to be over in just a few more painful minutes. But it wasn't so. My unicorn, faithful to the end, disobeyed my command and stayed. With a furious squeal, he stabbed his horn through the wolf's heart. It screamed in pain and thrashed around. Andy flung it off of me, its blood soaking me. It whined and thrashed for a moment, and then lay still. I watched the life go out of its eyes, and bent over and was violently sick from the violence and brutality of all of the fighting. The stench of death was all around me. But Anduril wouldn't let me linger on the sad facts. He butted me and waited for me to vault onto his back before bolting back in the direction of the rocks.
We raced back across the grass, leaping over bodies as we went. The rocky outcroppings rose up into a series of miniature canyons and cliffs. Peter and Fireheart were right in front of me. But then I heard the twang of a bowstring and Anduril grunted and squealed. He fell out from under me, and I was thrown several yards ahead of him. My breath was knocked out, and I lay there gasping for air with my eyes squeezed closed. I was aware of a shadow above me, and then someone grabbing my hand and yanking me to my feet. Then my diaphragm recovered from the impact and I could breathe again. I opened my eyes and saw Edmund locked in combat nearby with a dwarf. And Anduril lying on the grass, his sides heaving. I raced to him and saw the shaft of an arrow buried into his flank. Tears blurred my vision and I furiously tried to blink them away. Blood was pouring from the wound. "Damn it," I whispered. I patted his neck and then grabbed the shaft of the arrow. If I left it in, it could get broken off and stuck in his body. With a hard jerk and an anguished scream from the unicorn, I pulled the bloody weapon out. I stroked his neck again, promising I would come back to him. Then I jumped back to my feet and ran to help my king.