The journey seemed long but the riders took the lead; Edmund went ahead of the party to scout the woods and Peter and Caspian led the party, sometimes disagreeing with which path they should take. Caspian was confident in his knowledge of the woods but with Peter's stubbornness against him, he often gave in.

Susan glared at Peter.

Lily rode next to Leland and Susan. Leland asked Susan questions about her past life in Narnia, questions Lily already knew the answers to. They actually exchanged laughs and jokes, their hearts relieved on the heavy burden of the night that lay before them.

The woods were quiet, not a sound from a bird was heard and the trees were strangely still. Once they reached the edge of the woods, the hippogryphs would take them to the castle.

The light began to fade from the sky as their horses trudged onward. Lily often reached down to pat her neck. She cooed her to rest when she stumbled on the rocky terrain when they planned to go down the mountain side, a difficult path for the horses. But Lily discovered she was trying to calm herself as well. She caught herself thinking about the bad outcomes and had to take a deep breath, stopping her doubts.

The fauns that walked next to her, with their handsome faces and features, smiled and nodded to her, reassuring her to stay calm. As Leland told her, if you panic then they will win over you.

The trees began to thin and soon Lily could see the sky through the spider web branches. She saw faint stars, twinkling. They reminded her of the night she walked through the same trees, the only light to give her comfort.

They reached the base of the mountain and went deeper into the trees, heading south towards the tree line. Lily pointed out the plain that separated the woods from the castle to Susan; they could see it far off in the distance through the trees. The party stopped just before they neared the tree line.

Peter looked back to everyone, the horses huffing impatiently. They sensed the tension of the actions they were about to perform. They gathered in a circle with Glenstorm and his sons. They spoke quietly.

"If the hippogryphs take flight from here," Peter began, having thought the plan over and over as they traveled. "The sentinels will see them; no doubt they've been ordered to keep a look out for them."

"You need a distraction," Gabriel said bluntly.

Peter looked him in the eye, seeming unhappy with the decision.

"It's the only chance Edmund has of getting to the northwest tower and for Susan to take out as many tower guards as she can."

"I'll do it." Lily said immediately.

"No," Caspian said just as fast.

Lily met his eyes and Caspian seemed embarrassed of his outburst but meant it. She stared at him.

Leland closed his eyes, exasperated. "How did I know it would be you to volunteer?"

Lily glared at Leland, "I don't know what you mean, dear brother: you're going with me."

Leland smiled and laughed, reaching over and clapping his sister on the shoulder, "You are right; I forgot we were a pair in this mission. Let the fun begin."

"You will ride straight across the plain, verging right as you go towards the city. There you will go to the gates. If there's a guard, Susan will take him out. But your goal is to draw the towers' attention."

"There must be another way," Caspian said, his voice urgent.

"There's no time," Peter pressed. He turned back to Lily and Leland, "can you do it?"

"With all the speed this beast will permit," Leland pledged. He looked to Lily, "stay as close as you can to me and swerve your horse when we get closer in case we get in their crossbow range."

Lily nodded. She looked to Caspian and smiled a little. She understood his worry and when he looked at her, she could see the anxiety in his eyes. She remembered earlier on the cliff and the realization she had, the feelings she felt. But she pushed them aside. She couldn't afford to think of him. But she felt fear clasp onto her own heart when she tore her gaze away from him.

Leland dismounted and removed the weapons his horse had been carrying, lightening the load as much as he could.

"Ready, Lily?"

She looked up to her brother, trying not to show the shake in her hands. She nodded briskly.

Leland's horse joined hers and he reached over and squeezed her hand.

"Don't wander. We stay together. We'll make it back out."

Lily nodded again, her tongue too dry to speak.

Peter nodded to Leland, "whenever you're ready."

Leland grasped the reins and Lily followed suit. They kicked their horses urgently and the beasts flew out of the cover of the trees and onto the plain. There were no clouds this night and the moon was beginning to rise. There was nowhere to hide.

Lily's mind panicked when they were in the open; her eyes darted everywhere, trying to find refuge but the land was flat and merciless. They had nowhere to go but the city now.

The hooves thudded powerfully against the earth, the horses' legs pumping as hard as they could. Lily's hair whipped behind her, the air washing over her pale face, and she caught herself pushing the horse to go faster.

She thought of Eris. She thought of the Narnians. She thought of everyone that depended on them and their success. She thought of Caspian…his freedom also was at stake. She took a deep breath and when Leland looked back at her, his hair flowing around his handsome face, she felt calmer. She regained focus.

Lily rode close behind her brother and as they neared the castle, they switched their paths regularly. Lily thought she heard shouts but she didn't look up to see if guards were running along the battlements. She did, however, see a shadow fly across the ground in front of them. Edmund and Susan were high above them.

Leland pulled the reins, his horse veering right towards the city. The city was raised on rocky terrain, level with the castle. The small city was asleep, all the lights except the street lamps were out and they had to ride around the rocky base to the sloping path that led up to the city gates.

The ground turned from grass to rock as they entered a stone maze of sharp cliffs and boulders, weaving up to the entrance. They were covered in the shadow cast by the mountain next to the city.

Lily saw Susan above, aiming at something ahead of them. They galloped up the sloping stone up to the gate. Two bodies lay in front of the doors, dead. There were also two small towers on either side of the arched entry and the windows were empty. Leland rode up to the great wooden door and dismounted. He pushed against the doors and they slowly creaked open. Lily held the reins of his horse, watching him restlessly. He mounted again once the doors were wide open and together they rode across the bridge and into the quiet city. The hooves on the stone cobble streets echoed off the small tan buildings loudly.

Lily remembered the days her and Caspian used to race horses through the city. That was how she knew it so well. Their horses weaved in and out, tracing out the easiest path for the warriors.

Leland's horse came to a stop in the shadow of a house.

"We must douse the lamps that are not the path so the Narnians will find their way."

Lily nodded and they separated. They went through the small city, up and down streets. Lily went to each lamp that was not a part of the path, stood as high as she could on her horse, and blew out the lamps. She felt breathless.

She passed many friendly doors, their blue and yellow paint fading. She remembered the flowers that once decorated the windows. She knew hundreds of people lived here but in the quiet of the night, it was like a ghost town.

She retraced her paths, making sure she blew out the right lamps. She pushed her horse to gallop as fast as she could up the sloping streets through the sleeping city. She saw her brother waiting for her and he joined her in the gallop across the long narrow bridge that led to the castle.

Below them, hundreds of feet below, were sharp embankments of rock and Lily dared not to look down as their horses flew across. Stone turned to wood as the bridge split in two parts. They galloped across the wood and saw a strange shadow cast over their path. When they looked, they saw the gate was still down.

The horses skidded to a stop and they stared at the iron bars with wide eyes.

"Oh no…" Lily said, looking over her shoulder back to the city.

Leland's eyes darted from the iron gate to over the bridge wall, to the base rocks of the castle. His eyes were wild, desperate, thinking…

"There is a drain," he said, his mind whirling as he tried to think of a plan.

"A drain?" Lily asked loudly, trying to get her brother's attention. She thought he was going mad. "Leland? What drain?"

"They won't get here in time for the Narnians," he said as he looked out to the forest across the plain. "Edmund will give the signal soon…there cannot be a delay," he said, meeting her eyes. "Wait here, I'll find you inside."

He whipped his horse's neck around and galloped back down the bridge and disappeared into the dark city.

Lily stared at him in shock. But all she could do was wait.

….

"You don't have time," Peter said with exasperation, staring at Caspian in disbelief. "You need to get the gate open."

Caspian turned on Peter, his dark eyes fixed with determination. "You wouldn't be here without him. And neither would I."

They were in Doctor Cornelius' study which had been over turned. His books were ripped and papers were scattered everywhere. Caspian knew he had been imprisoned.

"You and I will deal with Miraz," Susan said.

Peter sighed and turned to the door with Susan behind him. Susan gave Caspian a nod before disappearing.

Caspian ran the other direction, down corridors and spiraling staircases, down to the dungeons. As he went deeper into the castle, it grew darker and colder, the same it had been when they had rescued Leland and the others. He had his sword drawn and he grew more apprehensive as he descended the stairs to the deep dungeons: there were no guards.

Until he saw the dungeon guard, asleep while standing against the wall. Caspian saw the dungeon keys hanging on his belt. Without hesitating, he lunged at him with his sword, striking him in the stomach. Caspian had killed before and was not in favor of it, but he thought of his friends and Doctor Cornelius and that enabled him to do what he thought was necessary.

The guard, stunned and staring at Caspian with blank eyes, fell to the ground. Caspian quickly unhooked the keys from his belt and went to the bared door and unlocked it. The door opened with a loud creak.

He entered the dungeon chamber, a low ceiling wide room with no light. The bars of the cells could not be made out in the dark and he heard water dripping through the cracks in the stone above him.

Caspian had not spent much time in the dungeons but he remembered he had gotten lost in them when he was young. The chamber served as the base of the castle and seemed to go on forever in the damp darkness. Miraz had put many innocent men, including his own councilmen in its cells.

Caspian squinted, feeling along the cell bars as he walked. He held his sword steady in his hands and whirled around when he heard someone behind him curse.

It was Leland; he had run into one of the cell walls. He rubbed his head and Caspian lowered his sword.

"Leland," Caspian said, surprised.

Leland was dripping wet: his hair was splattered across his forehead and neck and his shirt was soaked to his skin. Caspian could see his eyes glinting in the dark.

"The gate," Leland gasped, water droplets hanging from his eyelashes and nose. "Lily is waiting at the gate. The warriors will be here soon. I came to help."

"Why are you soaked," Caspian said as he touched Leland's sleeve.

"I came in through the drain at the base of the foundation," he answered, still panting. "Where are Peter and Susan?"

"They're opening the gate," Caspian began walking back down the cell aisle. "I'm rescuing the professor."

Leland followed him and they peered through the bars until they saw Doctor Cornelius, leaning against the stone wall sleeping.

Caspian took the keys and unlocked the door, dropping next to his professor. He shook the old man, his face relaxed and lined with wrinkles and age. He was a larger man and he had long gray hair and small round glasses. Caspian had learned the night of his escape that Doctor Cornelius' mother was a dwarf from the mountains; he was a Narnian, seeking to raise the future king of the Telmarines, of Narnia, to save his people.

"Professor," Caspian said in the man's ear.

The professor awoke and looked at Caspian, stunned.

"Five more minutes?" Caspian said with a clever smirk, referring to the night Doctor Cornelius had helped him escape.

"What are you doing here?" the doctor asked. He had an old wizened voice. "I didn't help you escape just so you could break back in!"

"We've been back before now, professor," Leland said with a laugh.

Doctor Cornelius looked at Leland, more surprise appearing in his eyes. "You have to get out before Miraz learns you're here!"

"He's going to learn soon enough," Leland said darkly.

Caspian smiled broadly, an evil glint in his eyes, "we are giving him your cell."

Panic flashed in the professor's eyes and he grabbed Caspian's arm roughly. Caspian questioned his teacher.

Doctor Cornelius' voice was sinister, "don't underestimate Miraz as your father did."

Leland stiffened.

Caspian stared at the professor, his face frozen with shock. He felt the breath leave his lungs; he felt as if he was in icy water, unable to breathe.

"What are you talking about," Caspian choked out the words, shaking.

Doctor Cornelius read the fear in his dear student's eyes. He saw the prince's life unraveling before him. Everything has been a lie.

"I'm sorry," the professor said, ashamed.

Caspian turned to look at Leland, his eyes wild.

Leland looked at his friend in the eye, frowning. His hands were tightly fisted.

Caspian's voice shook, understanding the disturbing expression on his friend's face.

"You knew."

Leland breathed steadily, his voice even, "I meant to tell you. But I couldn't risk it. It wasn't the right time…"

Without a word, Caspian rose and sprinted out of the dungeon, his footsteps echoing on the stairs.