Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.
Let's get to it.
Chapter 7- Sacrifice
Galen slowly opens his eyes as the sound of chirping birds wakes him. He stretches a bit before rolling out of bed. He had been granted his own tent in Aslan's camp in order to give him privacy.
Galen proceeds to dress quickly in the outfit given to him by the camp's tailor before strapping on his belt, both of his sabers hanging from the belt. He then steps outside, taking a deep breath of the crisp morning air.
As he glances around, Galen sees something. Crouched on an outcropping of rock less than a hundred yards away is Aslan, currently in the process of speaking to a young human boy. Galen narrows his eyes slightly to try and get a better look, and is able to make out some of the boy's features. It's not Peter, and as far as he knows humans don't exist in Narnia otherwise, which means this must be Edmund. The rescue must have been a success. With how late Oreius and his rescue party had left the previous day, and the estimated distance to where the Witch was keeping Edmund, they hadn't returned before it was time to bed down for the night. It was hoped they'd have returned by morning.
Hearing a rustling, Galen looks behind him and sees Peter emerging from the Pevensies' tent. Galen looks right at Peter until he sees he has the boy's attention before he gestures towards Aslan. Peter looks in the direction Galen is gesturing, and feels relief flood through him as he recognizes his brother as the one talking to Aslan.
Only a moment later, Susan and Lucy emerge from the tent as well. At first, they are looking curiously at Peter and Galen. Then, they look in the same direction as the boys, and Lucy cries out in excitement, "Edmund!", as she tries to rush towards her brother. Peter reaches out to hold her back, wanting to give Aslan and Edmund time to talk. However, her cry was noticed by both Aslan and Edmund, who both turn to look at the gathered group.
After a moment, Aslan looks back at Edmund and seems to nod at the boy. Edmund just nods in return before he begins to climb down from the rocks. Aslan waits until Edmund has climbed down before gently jumping down after him. Together, the two walk over to the Pevensies and Galen.
The two stop in front of them, Edmund unable to meet his siblings' eyes. Aslan speaks up to address the thing on everyone's mind, "What's done is done. There is no need to speak to Edmund about what is past." He then turns and slowly walks away from the group.
Everyone looks at Edmund, silence reigning. Edmund is the one who finally breaks the silence as he mutters softly, "Hello."
Breaking out in a big smile, Lucy rushes forward to embrace her brother. Edmund accepts the hug, glad to be back with his siblings after everything he went through. Susan joins Lucy in embracing Edmund, and together, the three stand there together before Susan pulls back and asks, "Are you all right?"
"I'm a little tired," Edmund replies.
"Get some sleep. We'll have breakfast in a little while," Peter says. Edmund looks at Peter and simply nods before he starts to walk towards the tent.
After Edmund has passed Peter, Peter turns around and calls to him, "And Ed…" Edmund turns around, afraid Peter is going to give him a scolding. However, Peter just says with an air of humor, "Try not to wander off." Edmund smiles a bit knowingly before heading into the tent.
As Lucy and Susan follow him, Peter turns to Galen. "Do you think he's learned his lesson?" he asks. He knows by now that Galen has some ability to sense people's thoughts.
Galen watches Edmund enter the tent before he responds, "Yeah, he has," Galen responds confidently.
(Few hours later)
Galen takes a long drink of water as he watches the Pevensies helping themselves to a breakfast set for them. Edmund in particular had been eating as much as he could get his hands on. The witch apparently hadn't fed him anything but a stone cold turkey leg that he hadn't been able to eat, and he was starving.
Edmund had been also asking a lot of questions of Galen. Apparently, Aslan had told Edmund there was a lot more to know about Galen than met the eye. Galen had explained to Edmund about his powers, as well as showed him his lightsabers. Edmund had been very intrigued and curious, and shown interest in having Galen help him learn to use a sword.
As Edmund scarfs down another slice of toast, Lucy giggles at him and says, "Narnia's not going to run out of toast, Ed." Edmund smiles and laughs to himself as he keeps eating.
"I'm sure they'll pack some up for the journey back."
Everyone turns to look at Peter, who is leaning against a nearby rock, a little confused by his statement. "We're going home?" Susan asks in confusion, wondering if that's really what Peter meant.
"You three are," Peter says. He walks over and sits down on one of the cushions before he adds, "I promised Mum I'd keep you three safe. But that doesn't mean I can't stay behind with Galen and help."
"But they need us. All of us," Luc protests.
"Lucy, it's too dangerous. Edmund was almost killed by the Witch!" Peter protests.
"Which is why we have to stay," Edmund pipes up softly. He is quiet for a moment as he looks around at his siblings before he says, "I've seen what the White Witch can do, and I've helped her do it. And we can't leave these people behind to suffer for it!"
Silence reigns for a moment before Galen speaks up and says, "Peter, whether you like it or not, Narnia is depending on all you. You all have called upon to serve as the next rulers of Narnia. It is the will of the Force, and trying to deny your destiny will do nobody any favors, including yourselves. You have me to fight alongside you, and an army ready to follow you, nor do all of you have to fight when the time comes. Like it or not, Narnia needs all four of you. The reason I was brought here was to help ensure your rise to the thrones, and I intend to fulfill that purpose." The iron look on his face shows to all of them how seriously he believes this.
Everyone is quiet and still for a few moments before Susan mutters, "I guess that settles it." She stands up from her cushion and walks over to where her bow and quiver rest against a rock.
"Where are you going?" Peter asks.
Susan picks up the bow and quiver before she glances at Peter with a confident smile as she says, "To get in some practice."
As Susan walks off, Galen looks around at the others. "She has a point. If the four of you are going to be involved in any way in the fight ahead, you need some kind of combat practice. Especially you boys. How about we see about you getting some lessons from Oreius?"
The breakfast soon breaks up. Lucy goes off to join Susan, while Galen takes Peter and Edmund off to see Oreius. After that, Galen decides to go off on his own for a little practice of his own.
Galen finds a small clearing in the middle of some pine trees just outside the perimeter of the camp, with some rocks scattered around the edge of it. A perfect place to run a few drills.
Galen settles into the center of the clearing and begins to meditate. He meditates for about 10 minutes before opening his eyes. Without even sitting up yet, he reaches out with the Force, and both of his lightsabers fly into his hands, their opposing blue and red blades springing to life.
Galen immediately springs to his feet. This is the first time he's fought in the Jar'kai stance in a while. Although he had trained for it, it wasn't his preferred style of combat. However, now that he has two sabers, he might as well make use of both of them.
Galen begins a series of training movements intended to practice swordplay when he doesn't have a sparring partner to practice with. Galen moves fluidly and with a speed most people would find beyond their ability to move at, his sabers flashing around him with incredible speed and precision.
As Galen continues his moves, he begins to concentrate on his Force powers. Tapping into the dark side, he begins to reach into his feeling of anger and hate for Vader. After a few moments, his fingers begin to crackle with Force lightning. Then, channeling the lightning along his sabers, Galen leaps up and drives his sabers into the ground, dispersing the lightning in one massive burst all around him.
As the lightning fades, Galen throws his sabers, guiding them through the air around the clearing and slicing through the trunks of the trees surrounding the clearing. Guiding them back to himself, he deactivates them with the Force and returns them to his belt. He then grasps the rocks lying around the clearing, gathering them all into a ball before using the Force to launch them all at the one tree he hadn't cut down with his sabers. The impact is strong enough to smash right through the trunk of the tree.
Galen stands silent and mostly unmoving for a few moments before he takes a long, drawn out breath. While his Force powers aren't quite what they used to be, at least his skill as a warrior hasn't diminished. Secretly, he's hoping to be the one to confront the White Witch when the battle against her comes.
"Galen!"
Galen whips around to see Mrs. Beaver hurrying towards him. "Mrs. Beaver. What is it?" Galen demands.
"The Witch is coming! She's demanded a meeting with Aslan and is coming here under a flag of truce!" Mrs. Beaver exclaims, clearly very worried.
Galen's face contorts into one of concern. "Let's go," he responds simply, and hurries off back towards the camp. As he is running back to the camp, his mind is going through possible scenarios. Personally, he believes Aslan is individually more powerful than the White Witch, but the Witch would be too proud to just back down. So why could she be coming here?
As Galen enters the camp, he sees that much of the army has gathered along the path leading through the center of camp to Aslan's tent. Only a minute, the Pevensies come hurrying out of the midst of the crowd and rush up to Galen. If they're going to be forced to be in the presence of the Witch, they want to be right next to one of the most powerful people they know.
Soon enough, they begin to hear jeering from the far end of camp. Soon enough, they can hear a somewhat high pitched voice calling out, saying something formal to the gathered members of Aslan's army. And then, she comes into view. The White Witch, carried on a throne on a litter by four large, one-eyed humanoids.
Galen narrows his eyes as he gets his first look at the White Witch. At first look, she looks to be a rather tall individual. He estimates her to be around 7 feet tall, maybe taller. She wears a very large white dress that flows around and behind her. Her skin is an extremely pale white color, and her eyes seem to have black irises with a very piercing look to them. Her hair, which seems to be a blend of light blonde and white, is done up behind her head. A series of icicles ring the top of her head, and Galen can't tell if that is her crown, or if the icicles are just growing in her hair.
The beasts carrying the Witch set down the litter, and she stands from her throne. She slowly approaches Aslan, who is staring her down with a very firm expression on his face. As she approaches him, the Witch slowly turns her head, looking directly at Edmund. Galen notices this and shifts his position slightly so he's partly between Edmund and the Witch. Galen and the Witch have a staredown for about 2 seconds before the Witch redirects her attention over to Aslan.
The Witch stops a safe distance from Aslan, just in case Aslan makes an aggressive move. "You have a traitor in your midst, Aslan."
Some murmuring moves through the crowd, and quite a few individuals turn their heads to look at Edmund. Galen briefly glances at the boy himself, but quickly returns his focus towards the Witch. Aslan has remained focused on the Witch the whole time, and now speaks up, "His offense was not against you."
"Have you forgotten the laws upon which Narnia was built?" the Witch asks him.
With a slight roar, Aslan snarls at the Witch, "Do not cite the Deep Magic to me, Witch! I was there when it was written!" Galen's full attention is drawn to Aslan in that moment. Somehow, Aslan's words and the power behind his voice and roar have made Galen think that Aslan is far more powerful than he's even thought before.
The Witch does not seem too intimidated however. In an almost arrogant tone, she says, "Then you'll remember well that…every traitor belongs to me. His blood is my property."
Peter feels a surge of anger. He quickly draws his sword, holding it out in front of him as he says angrily, "Try and take him then!" Several other members of the army draw their weapons too, but one of the Witch's guards, a minotaur, growls and hefts his axe in a threatening manner to try and get them to back off. In response, Galen takes a step forward and draws his red saber, igniting the blade. Some of the Witch's guards shuffle nervously, but nobody moves.
The Witch only spares Galen a brief glance before refocusing on Peter. This causes Galen to feel a brief sense of anger, as he realizes she is completely dismissing him. She looks right at Peter as she says dismissively, "Do you think mere force will deny me my right, little king?"
The Witch then refocuses her attention on Aslan, but begins speaking to the entire camp, "Aslan knows that unless I have blood, as the law demands, all of Narnia will be overturned, and perish in fire and water!" The Witch then turns to face the Pevensies and Galen and points directly at Edmund as she declares, "That boy will die on the Stone Table, as is tradition!"
Galen is about to say something in response, but before he can, the Witch looks back at Aslan and says to him, "You dare not refuse me."
"Enough!" Aslan declares before adding, in a softer voice, "I shall talk with you alone." Aslan then turns and walks back into his tent. The Witch stares after him in suspicion for a moment before she slowly follows him.
Everyone in the army is looking around in concern, hoping that Aslan knows what he's doing.
At first, everyone thinks it will only be a minute before the talk between the two is done. However, as the minutes pass, everyone in the camp realizes it might be a while. Individuals begin to converse with each other, sharpen their weapons, or otherwise try to find something to occupy their time.
The minutes pass, and everyone is waiting anxiously for Aslan and the Witch to re-emerge. Then, a rustling from Aslan's tent draws everyone's attention. Everyone begins to stand up, and a second later, the Witch emerges from the tent, throwing the entrance flaps aside as she exits. She takes a few slow steps, staring at Edmund with a strange look, before she turns and walks back towards her escort. As she does, Aslan steps out of the tent. As the Witch reaches her litter, Aslan looks towards Edmund, and seems like he has an almost sad look on his face for a few moments. After a few moments, he turns his attention to the whole army and announces aloud the results of the discussion: "She has renounced her claims on the son of Adam's blood!"
Everyone in the army begins to cheer, and the other three Pevensies turn to celebrate with Edmund. However, everyone's attention is caught when the Witch asks Aslan in a demanding tone, "How do I know your promise will be kept?"
Multiple individuals look at the Witch in confusion, including Galen, wondering what promise she's talking about. However, Aslan seems to almost take offense to this, and roars angrily at the Witch, instantly shutting her up and causing to sit down quickly and motion for her guard to leave. Everyone watching cheers at Aslan's roar and as they watch the Witch leave.
Galen, however, is not focused on the Witch anymore. His attention is now focused on Aslan, who seems to be absentmindedly looking at the ground, a sad expression on his face. Through the Force, Galen can sense sadness coming off Aslan. Something isn't right with Aslan and he's trying to hide it from everyone else. And this worries Galen. For a being like Aslan to be feeling such emotions…something bad happened in that tent, and Galen has no idea what it could be. And that worries him.
(That night)
Lying in his bed, about an hour or so after midnight, Galen is turning restlessly in bed. He hasn't been able to sleep well tonight. His mind has been full of strange dreams all night that have made him restless.
Suddenly, he feels something. Not through the Force, but in his tent, and a breeze blowing through his tent. With him sleeping so restlessly, it's enough to wake him up. Galen sits bolt upright, Rahm Kota's old lightsaber flying across his tent and into his hand, the blade igniting. Galen aims the blade towards the intruder, but he quickly realizes the intruder is actually a cloud of flower petals arranged in the shape of a woman. A nymph, he remembers them being called.
"Be at ease, Galen Marek. I bring grave news from Susan and Lucy Pevensie," the nymph says.
A feeling of unease surges through Galen. "What is it?" Galen asks, slowly lowering his saber.
"His Highness Aslan is dead. He was killed on the Stone Table, giving his life in place of Lord Edmund," the nymph says.
In a flash, Galen is on his feet and racing out of the tent, shock filling him. No, that cannot be.
As he races over to the Pevensie's tent, he sees Edmund emerging from the tent. Edmund looks up at Galen, and after looking at the look on his face, he says, "You got the message too?"
Galen slows to a stop. He's quiet for a moment before he asks, "They're gone? Aslan is really…?" Edmund just nods.
Galen feels a sense of despair. Already, he had formed a strong connection to the great lion, and come to think that Aslan would be his new teacher. However, his sadness lasts only for a moment before rage begins to overtake him, and Force lightning begins to crackle along his fingers. "The Witch is going to pay for this…" he mutters to himself.
(Short time later)
Galen looks up as Peter comes out of Aslan's tent. Peter, Galen, and Edmund had worked with Oreius to rouse the army in case of a sudden attack, all while trying to confirm if Aslan was indeed dead. Now, the other three are gathered around a map of Narnia resting on a table while Peter had checked for anything in Aslan's tent. Peter looks up at the group and says, "It's true. He's gone."
Everyone is quiet for a few moments before Edmund says, "Then you'll have to lead us."
Peter and Galen both look at Edmund, who continues to speak, "Peter, there's an army out there, and it's ready to follow you!"
"I can't!" Peter protests, still feeling so adequate, especially when he has next to no training.
"Aslan believed you could!" Edmund points out. Then, after a brief pause, he adds, "And so do I."
Peter looks at Edmund, surprised at his brother's words. He then turns to look at Galen, who gives him a nod and says, "I'll fight with you, Peter."
After a few more moments, Oreius speaks up and asks, "The Witch's army is nearing, sire. What are your orders?"
Peter is quiet, thinking for a few moments. Then, he turns to Galen and says, "Galen, you know warfare better than I do, and you're a much better fighter. If I'm in charge of this army now, then I'm appointing you as my General."
"Are you sure?" Galen asks.
"Absolutely," Peter responds.
Galen is quiet for a few moments, then glances down at the map in front of them. Leaning forward to rest his hands on the table, he smiles slightly as he says, "Alright. Let's do this."
And, I'll end there.
I hope you liked this chapter, especially the description of Galen's brief practice session. We'll get to see Galen really in action next chapter.
So, I'm sure some have wondered what Galen's role in the future of Narnia will be, since the Pevensies are the kings and queens. Well, this chapter showed it. Galen will hold the position of General of Narnia, and will hold this role for the rest of the story. He will kind of be joint leader with Peter in the battle starting next chapter.
Alright. Next chapter will be up soon. Until it is, please leave a review, and stay tuned!