Chryssa snorted with anticipation and shook her mane. Her body buzzed with adrenaline under me and I stroked her neck, trying to calm her with quiet murmurs, even though I was just as impatient. The tension of the oncoming battle thrummed through the entire army as soldiers checked and double-checked their weapons, stretched to keep loose, and paced to settle their nerves.

Moonshadow and Edmund stood on either side of me at the front of the secondary unit Peter had stationed up in the rocks. The division was small and consisted mostly of archers, but Peter didn't want to risk either Edmund or me on the frontlines, so he made us the captains of this unit. I objected, of course, but Peter reminded me that the White Witch had basically promised to kill me herself.

"If you're out front with Oreius and me, she'll zero in on you in no time," he'd explained. "You won't stand a chance. You're our last connection to Aslan and it would help morale if you were up in the rocks where our troops can see you."

I couldn't argue with his reasoning so here I was looking down on the vast grassland at the foot of the giant rocky hill Peter had chosen for the battlefield. The majority of the Narnian army were lined up at the bottom of the rocks, waiting for the Witch's army to arrive. Peter sat astride his unicorn on top of a small mound at the head of the army, Oreius at his side.

A sharp scream pierced the sky and a gryphon came soaring toward us. The captain of the gryphons had volunteered to scout out the Witch's army and report back when they were about to advance. He wheeled over the army, greeting my unit before landing on the other side of Peter on the mound where he exchanged words with the commanders.

Edmund fidgeted in his armor and I adjusted my own chest plate for the fiftieth time. Both of us wore open helmets, and my light brown hair was pulled back into a braid. "You nervous?" I asked him.

He looked up at me, his mouth set in a firm line. Philip had turned up lame that morning so the stallion had stayed at camp and Edmund had to fight on foot. "A bit. I can't say I ever imagined I'd be fighting in a battle in a fantasy world."

"No, I can't say that, either," I replied.

Edmund's brow furrowed. "Didn't Aslan prepare you to fight, though?"

I scrambled to cover my slip-up. "I mean, I suppose I just didn't think this was how it would happen, without Aslan and all that."

At that moment a dull rumbling reached us from across the plain. A lone dark figure appeared on a small rise some distance away and raised his head in a savage battle cry that echoed off the rocks, and I recognized it as the call of General Otmin.

Then the White Witch's army came into view.

The army was spread out across the plain and didn't seem to have any organization as the myriad of creatures gathered behind the black minotaur. They all snarled and swung their weapons around, eager for the battle their leader had promised them.

The White Witch herself rode in a silver chariot pulled by two giant polar bears. Instead of her traditional white, though, she wore some sort of golden collar over a chainmail gown.

I clenched the reins so tight that the pressure made Chryssa toss her head and pull on the reins in protest.

The collar was made from the hair shorn from Aslan's mane to make one for the Witch, attached to a golden helmet shaped like a lion's jaw.

"I'm gonna kill her," I swore.

"Join the club," Edmund said through gritted teeth.

The Witch's army halted behind her on the mound and silence fell upon the plain.

Below us, Peter looked up and found Edmund and me on the ridge. Even though he was far away, the question was clear.

Are we really going to do this?

Edmund and I looked at each other, then nodded to Peter.

Time to save Narnia.

Peter turned back around and drew his sword, raising it in the air. The rest of the Narnians below followed suit and the battle horn blew the signal to prepare to charge. A cry went up from our soldiers as they shook their weapons in the air.

General Otmin roared and the Witch's army began their charge. He led part of the army the size of our own forward, leaving the other half and the Witch behind.

I scowled and I hoped that the Witch could feel my fury across the battlefield. She won't even lead her own army into battle, the coward.

Edmund drew his own sword as Peter didn't react to the army now running toward us. Then Peter swung his sword back and forward again. At the signal, the flock of gryphons gathered behind us at the top of the cliff took to the skies, many with boulders in their talons. Their captain left Peter's side and joined them as they soared toward the Witch's army, releasing their loads as they drew closer and squashing bunches of monsters.

The Witch's army was quick to respond, though, and a gryphon here and there began to tumble out of the sky as her archers let loose. Out of boulders, the gryphons scattered, and we knew it would take a few minutes for them to collect more and drop them on the Witch's reserves. Despite the gryphons' attacks, the Witch's army did not falter in their charge.

I saw Peter and Oreius exchange words, and then Peter raised his sword again, his battle

call ringing loud and clear:

"For Narnia! And for Aslan!"

The unicorn reared and then leapt forward, Oreius a pace behind. Cries of "For Aslan!" trickled back through the army, and the charge began.

Chryssa snorted and skipped back and forth, anxious to join the forces below. I held her back with a firm grip. "Not yet, Chryssa. Don't worry, we'll have our turn."

We watched as the two armies hurtled toward each other. Our Narnian army formed an inverted V behind Peter and Oreius while the Witch's army formed a staggered frontline. When the two forces were no more than fifty yards away from each other the centaur spearmen at the front of the Narnian charge lowered their long weapons, and our leopards began to pull in front of the rush, with white tigers coming out from the Witch's army in response.

Twenty yards.

Peter lowered the visor of his helmet.

Ten.

I fought the urge to shut my eyes.

The big cats' flung themselves at each other with fangs bared and vicious caterwauls.

Then the armies collided.

Monsters were flung back by the centaurs' spears. Metal crashed together as soldiers simply slammed into each other before properly sparring. Mere moments had passed before the screams drifted up to the cliff.

I kept my eyes on Peter as the unicorn took him untouched into the Witch's army. He hesitated to swing his sword at a few open targets but at last he slashed at a minotaur, opening the beast up across the gut and knocking him into the ground. After that first strike I didn't see any more delays in Peter's sword whenever it met a new target.

The Witch's army was vicious, to put it lightly. General Otmin swung his weapon with a speed that didn't seem to fit his size. The dwarves, hardened from life underground, held up better than I expected. For each one of their numbers one of our soldiers cut down, they matched the casualty. A few of the gryphons returned to help pick off a few enemies, but it was difficult for them to do much without risking injury to our own forces.

Duels lasted mere seconds, and it didn't take as long expected for the numbers of the initial charges to fall by half on each side. But then gradually there was more red than black on the field, and the Witch's soldiers' behavior changed. They started acting a bit more cautiously instead of attacking the Narnians recklessly. They hadn't expected the Narnian army to be so strong, and our forces actually started to push them back a little.

The Witch seemed to notice the change as well. She flicked the reins and urged her polar bears forward, her reserves following, fresh and ready to reinforce their comrades.

Peter turned to look up at our station on the cliffs and swung his sword in a sweeping motion.

"The phoenix!" I cried.

Moonshadow poked an arrow into one of the lanterns from Aslan's tent and the flame inside jumped onto the point.

"Fire!" Edmund ordered.

The centauress raised her bow and shot the arrow high into the sky over the two armies. A few moments after it was loosed the arrow's tip sparked and then in a burst of flames a crimson bird had replaced the arrow. It circled and dived toward the battlefield from one side. More flames began to flicker around its feathers, and then in the next moment the phoenix itself was made of fire. It streaked along the ground in front of the Witch and her reserves, lighting a wall of fire between them and the Narnian army.

Cheers went up from our soldiers as the Witch's army stopped at the fire. Beaver, outfitted with his own little suit of armor and bow, pumped his fist and shouted, "Yes!" from his spot next to Edmund. Peter even raised his visor as he stared at the Witch from behind the flames.

Our enthusiasm was short-lived. A blue burst of magic from the Witch's wand snuffed out the fire and she resumed leading her army through the wisps of smoke that remained.

The Narnian horn trumpeted the signal to fall back as Peter replaced his visor and turned around to lead the soldiers back to the rocks where Edmund and I waited with our own reserves. Combining that with what remained from the initial charge, we barely had enough to match maybe two-thirds of what was left of the Witch's army.

I yanked at Chryssa's reins to turn her around and told Edmund, "I'm going to lead some soldiers down to meet them. You got the archers?"

Edmund nodded. "Go, go!"

I beckoned to Moonshadow and we plunged down the ridge, gathering the first soldiers we saw as we went. Some of the ones from the charge had already reached the rocks, the Witch's army not far behind. Moonshadow and I passed by on either side of Peter, whom I vaguely heard shout my name. When we rounded the curve and saw the Witch's army reach the base of the rocks I drew my rapier. A moment later, the soldiers in front fell as Edmund signaled the archers to fire.

I yelled, "For Narnia!" and then my squad was on top of the Witch's monsters.

I blocked the sword of an ogre that swung at me immediately, my arm straining under the weight of the ogre's muscles. Chryssa moved me away from the ogre and then reared, lashing out with her front hooves and catching the ogre in the chest. When she landed back on all fours my muscles acted before my brain and my rapier plunged through the ogre's chest.

I pulled out my blade right away and stared at the bloodstains. They were darker than human blood. They reminded me of a muddy swamp, the kind that people go into and never return, lost in the murky waters. The stained silver wavered as my entire body started to shake from shock.

"Lady Jenna!" The next thing I knew, Moonshadow was next to me again, pulling Chryssa away from the commotion and behind some rocks. She grabbed me by the shoulders and said, "Lady Jenna, you can't let a spot of blood get to you. There's a whole lot more than that out there and we don't have the time or men for you to falter." Her hands moved to mine and her voice softened. "We need you, my lady. You've done well in training and you just proved your worth with that foul beast. You can do this."

I stared at the centauress for a moment, looked back at my bloody rapier, and then nodded. I swallowed and with the motion I imagined my fear being forced down deep within me, to a place where it could not inhibit me from protecting the Narnians. They needed me.

Aslan needed me.

A chilling whinny that made Chryssa neigh in alarm caught our attention and we looked over to see Peter's unicorn collapse with an arrow in its side, throwing Peter to the ground.

"Peter!" I shouted. Chryssa cantered over to him and I slid off her back before she came to a stop, tumbling next to Peter. His helmet had come off with the fall but he looked unharmed. "You okay?" I asked.

He nodded. "Just a little winded."

Chryssa nudged me and I ordered her, "Go, stay close to Moonshadow." She tossed her head defiantly, but cantered off to rejoin the centauress.

Peter and I helped each other up and looked to see the Witch rounding a bend in the rocks in her chariot, her gaze fixed on the two of us. I instinctively grabbed Peter's arm for comfort, suppressed fear threatening to rise back up within me.

There was a rough roar behind us and then Oreius and a rhino galloped past. Peter ordered, "Stop!" but they continued to charge toward the White Witch.

"What do they think they're doing? There are too many," I said.

Peter said nothing.

We watched as the rhino took the lead, knocking down a few ogres and minotaurs before being brought down by a crew of nasty ankle-slicers. Oreius leapt over it, knocking away minotaurs and cyclopes and ogres, never veering from his course. General Otmin lumbered into his path and Oreius raised both swords he was wielding, ready for the minotaur's axe and not even slowing when the beast grabbed onto his flank. Oreius elbowed him to try and loosen the minotaur's grip, and then twisted around and sank both swords into Otmin's back. The great black minotaur finally let go and collapsed, unmoving.

Oreius drew his greatsword now as he reached the Witch's chariot, knocking down a smaller minotaur like it was a ragdoll with one stroke. He leapt over the polar bears, which tried to claw at him, and swung at the Witch's head, but she leaned back and dodged his blade. Oreius landed just behind the chariot, quickly regaining his footing and lunging at the Witch again. She parried his attack, spun her wand around, and jabbed at his exposed torso.

"No!" I cried out.

There was a burst of blue light, and when it faded, Orieus had turned to stone, his sword still raised above him.

I put my hand to my mouth and tried to fight down the fear again, without as much success. How could we fight the Witch's magic? My magic was no good without books, and the closest thing to that was the scrolls in Aslan's tent way back at camp.

But I didn't have any more time to think as a cyclops finally noticed the two humans standing out in the open. He bellowed and charged Peter and me, lifting his battle-axe. Peter pushed me behind him and caught the cyclops's axe with his shield and thrust with his sword, but only managed to slice the monster's shoulder. I dashed around to the cyclops's flank and sliced across its side with my rapier, making it roar in pain and swing its axe wildly at me. I ducked to avoid the attack but now Peter had a clear opening to stab the cyclops in the back, kicking it to the ground next to me.

We nodded to each other and took up fighting stances back-to-back as more of the Witch's army attacked us. I would parry and feint and knock our foes off-balance, then rotate with Peter who would strike the killing blow. I did my own fair share of stabbing monsters' hearts and slicing their throats open, though. More and more blood coated my rapier, and I started to grow numb to the sight of it.

I'd stepped away from Peter a little when the hag jumped on me, knocking off my helmet. I spun and sliced behind me with my rapier, slashing something, hopefully flesh. The hag hissed in my ear and let go and I spun to face her. She held two daggers, one in each hand. I adjusted my grip on my rapier as we circled each other.

"I recognize you," she crooned. "The great lion's pet."

I didn't reply.

"I remember how it felt when my nails tore your cheek," she continued, cackling, "how your skin peeled and the blood welled."

I put a hand to my cheek, images of the previous night flashing through my head: the fire, the humiliation, the pain, the tears.

"Oh, but it looks like you're all patched up, made yourself pretty again." The hag's face stretched into a wicked grin and she twirled her daggers. "I'll just have to fix that."

The light going out of Aslan's eyes.

The hag and I sprang at each other at the same time, both screaming. I caught one of her daggers with my rapier but she sliced my arm with the other and I almost dropped my blade. I danced away from her, trying to flank her but she was lithe and followed my movements more easily than the cyclops. I feinted to her right and she took the bait, and I flicked my rapier to strike her left wrist, knocking the dagger out of that hand and grabbing her other wrist with my free hand. But she twisted herself and my arm with her, forcing me to let go with a yelp. I kicked away her dagger before she could retrieve it and slashed at her again, but she easily dodged and jabbed at my torso, finding an opening in my chestpiece and nicking my left side. The hag followed up with a flurry of jabs and I tried to step away, but she didn't let up as I blocked as many as I could, scratches multiplying on my arms and a couple on my cheeks.

Then she punched me.

The blow caught me completely by surprise as she struck my jaw and knocked me down to the ground. The hag pounced on me in an instant, tearing my rapier from me and using her legs to pin down my arms as she straddled my chest. She clasped her free hand around my throat and slightly squeezed, making me cough. The tip of her dagger played around my face like an icicle tickling my skin and hair.

"Such pretty green eyes," she murmured, the dagger outlining my eyes, which were wide with terror. That wicked grin returned. "I think I'll cut them out for myself."

The hag raised her dagger and I shut my eyes and tried to turn my face away but the hand around my throat stopped me with a sharp squeeze.

Suddenly there was a shrill cry from the hag and the weight on top of me disappeared. I coughed and gasped as my throat was released, putting my own hands to it. I opened my eyes to see Edmund standing over me, the hag lying motionless on the ground a few feet away.

"You all right?" he asked as he held out a hand.

I took it and stood up, wavering a bit as adrenaline tried to combat shock. "Yeah, thanks. You saved my life."

Edmund picked up my rapier and handed it to me. "Well, you saved my life getting me away from the Witch. Figured I'd return the favor."

I smirked at him. "So, if I hadn't saved you, then you would've let that hag kill me?"

"What? No!" Edmund sputtered. "Of course not!"

I lightly nudged his shoulder. "Relax, I'm teasing, I know you're not that much of an ass."

Suddenly the hag appeared behind Edmund, eyes dark and daggers raised. I shouted, "Watch out!" as I shoved Edmund away and stabbed the hag in the gut, my rapier going through her halfway. The daggers dropped from the hag's hands and blood trickled out of her mouth as I pushed her off the blade and she crumpled to the ground.

This time, she didn't get up.

AN: HOLY COW ANOTHER CHAPTER WOULD YA LOOK AT THAT
So yes I finally got around to working on this story again! I know I left y'all hanging at an awful point, I'm sorry about that. Anyway, the battle has begun! I hope I did a decent job with the action scenes, I don't have as much experience with that kind of stuff. This is just part one of the battle, part two will be the next chapter, which will hopefully be out within a couple days (we all know how I am with those kinds of "promises" lol).

On another note: I recently made a deviantART account and I'll be posting some of my original writing on there so if you're interested feel free to check it out! I'm stellatrix13 there as well.

Favorite, follow, REVIEW, and share! Thanks for reading, love y'all. :)