12

FOR NARNIA

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Each member of the Narnian army watched in awe as the griffin swooped through the sky to not only check over their army, which admittedly wasn't as big as what they were hoping, but to also scout as far as the Witch's soldiers.

The mystical beast landed with a thump beside Alexandra on the small cliff of rock that held not just Alex but also Peter and General Oreius, the wings tucking into his body quickly, "They come, Your Highness, in numbers and weapons far greater than our own."

"Numbers do not win a battle," the General tried to inspire his leader but it was unsuccessful.

The boy looked around behind him at the loose numbers of Narnians dressed head to toe, or in most cases hoof, in red and gold armour. Above the fleet of soldiers on a mountain of rocks and grass stood Edmund with the archers. It was Alex's idea to keep the younger Pevensie boy out of harm's way for the initial collision of both armies where they were most likely to lose most of their fighters, Peter was easily compliant to her wishes. But what he didn't know what that the girl needed the Pevensie later on.

"No, but I bet they help."

"You're right Peter, they do help. But what also helps is having a little bit of hope and a hell of a good plan," Alex waved her armoured arm behind her to emphasise what they had thought of before they marched to the battlefield, "If we just stick to the strategy then we already have a foot up."

The opposing army was soon to march into the hostile territory in numbers that were easily triple their competitors. Even with the reserves hiding behind the few archers in the rocks they didn't stand a chance. Alexandra could make out the tall figures of several giants and polar bears that pulled the Witch to the field, but more importantly, she could see the golden fur around Jadis' neck, the very fur that she had shaved from Aslan as she tormented him seconds before his death.

The very thought of it made Alex shake in anger.

With a second of hesitation, Peter turned to his younger brother who stood a far distance away from him. The younger of the two gave both soldiers on their horses a responsive nod to show that he was ready. Alex heard Peter take a deep breath before removing the long blade from the scabbard and holding it high.

All members of his army followed in his pursuit of holding their weapons up, banging swords on shields and shouting out a battle cry to try and intimidate their rivals. Alex even joined them by going as far to hold her shield in one arm and her axe in the other, pointing it to the clouds silently.

"I have no intention in prisoners, kill them all," the Witch spoke clearly down to her own General.

"And what of the girl; Alexandra?"

A wicked grin spread over her evil features before turning back to see the white-haired girl gearing up for battle in all her glory, "Leave that to me, it will be over before she knows it."

Though Alex could see the Witch conspiring with her General, she couldn't hear it. But with the close proximity to Jadis, she could feel the familiar tugging in her chest that she could only hope wouldn't affect the outcome of the battle or where her loyalties lie.

"Alex?" Peter asked to catch her attention, and he did, "She can't hurt you anymore."

The girl gulped before watching as the Witch's army started to sprint across the grass to attack, the end was nearing much faster than what she intended it to do. "It isn't me that I am worried about, Peter. It's everyone else."

"Are you with me?" he asked both Alex and Oreius as the sword in his hand came down which was the signal for the griffins, lead by Gryphon, to take off to the skies and drop the large boulders on their enemies.

"To the death," the centaur replied before meeting the grey eyes that belonged to the girl on the other side of their leader, he gave her a quick and respective bow of the head and she did the same.

"Until the end," Alex uttered before closing the mask of her helmet as she watched the rocks continue to fall down onto the enemies and killing or injuring many, even a few griffins were shot out of the sky but the majority of the beasts managed to circle back around.

"For Narnia and for Aslan!" Peter roared out as his horse, Harlow, took off at great speed and soon followed by Alexandra on Marcellus and the General.

At first, it was just a clash of red and gold on grey and black with loud cries emitting from both sides. But when you looked closer, it was clearer to see the different species of Narnians and the two humans fighting against the Witch's army.

The Dawson girl felt her axe rip through the soldiers as she charged through their formation on horseback, she even felt the Jadis' stone-cold glare resting on her as she fought, injured and even killed so ruthlessly. But she wasn't going to stop, not until the Witch's reign had ended and the 100-year long winter was a topic for the history books for the new era.

'But when the Crimson Knight departs alone, a new era will have begun.'

The words continued to play around in her mind on a continuous loop, plaguing her thoughts and distracting her spirit. Even so that she seemed to have fallen behind from the front of the formation, but she didn't care. She had assumed that she was the Crimson Knight, but what about the departure? Why would she have to leave?

"Hold on!" Marcel shouted over the noise of the battle as he reared up and kicked away one of the snow leopards that aimed to tackle the girl from the saddle before he started to sprint to where Peter was fighting.

Suddenly, a phoenix appeared from the embers of a flaming arrow and took off soaring above the fight. The bird's wings skimmed over the blades of grass sending fire catching into a wall that separated one army from the other.

But everything good had to come to an end as the Witch approached the defence and ripped through it with a blue blast emitting from her wand which allowed her chariot to enter through the gap. Both Peter and Alex shared an equally as concerned expression before rearing their horses back.

"Fall back!" he shouted over to his subjects, "Draw them to the rocks!"

A loud horn echoed after his command as the Narnians in red retreated back into their plan, all but one. Alexandra Dawson debated the action of throwing her axe at Jadis in attempt to harm, kill or disarm her but it occurred to her that whatever harm happens to the White Witch would be invoked on her as well.

"Aslan's roar-" she almost screamed out as an arrow was shot her way, much to the Witch's dismay, and aimed directly at her face. The girl was almost thrown from Marcellus at the sight of it but kept a tight grip on the reigns in hand and ducked her head to continue following after Peter who watched in shock.

Peter's army continued to run to the safety and coverage that the rocks provided them, each one shouting to their comrades to 'fall back' or 'watch out'. The familiar woosh of the arrows gliding through the sky filled her ears as the archers let them fly, though it all stopped as each one embedded in either their attackers on the ground around them.

A loud neigh ripped through the air in their stead as an arrow, this time fired by Ginarrbrik, lodged into Harlow's, Peter's majestic unicorn, back leg. The horse reacted in the way that anyone else would have, rearing up and throwing the king to be from the saddle with a grunt.

"Peter!" Alex screamed as she noticed that the white horse was no longer at her side and instead the Pevensie boy was in a bundle on the grass a distance behind her. The Dawson's cries seemed to catch the attention of Edmund and General Oreius who noticed the Witch nearing Peter with every second. The centaur shared a look with the white-haired knight, "Until the end?"

"Till the death," the man replied as the two took off with weapons in hand, even a large rhinoceros in their pursuit. Little did the girl know, the rhino took off faster than she could have hoped and ended up cutting through her line of travel. Marcel the horse had no other choice but to swerve off to the side and nearly trip, Oreius shouted back words that startled her even more so, "Win the war, Crimson Knight!"

The General and the rhino continued to charge at Jadis and crash through her soldiers with ease. Oreius didn't stop charging, not even after witnessing the rhino get knocked over and attacked by many. He continued to sprint until meeting the Witch halfway and taking down a minotaur easily. But as soon as he decided to take on Jadis alone, he lost. The centaur was diminished to nothing but a stone figure and forgotten about by leader of the opposing army who continued her journey up the rocks.

As Alexandra continued to watch in shock, a pained cry left her lips. At first, she couldn't locate the source of pain. But all it took was her grey eyes noticing where Peter was staring in fear - her shoulder. One of the Witch's arrows had landed and broke through the armour, cutting through her flesh and the metal.

"Aslan's roar!" she yelled in agony and jumped down from the saddle weakly to grip her shoulder, but there wasn't enough time. She couldn't let an injury slow her down, not when there was a battle to be won. So, to buy her as much time as possible, she let the axe fly from her hands and in the direction of the grey army. But as soon as the axe fell from her fingertips she noticed how the same wound appeared in the exact same place that it did for her but also for Jadis.

The White Witch winced as blood dripped down her arm and stained her dress, but that wasn't all. The fear on her face wasn't caused by the wound but because Alexandra had noticed that Jadis wasn't as powerful as she had tried to convey. Regardless, the Witch raised her crystal wand to her wound and let her skin heal so that it was nothing but a bloodied stain. Alex hoped that it also worked on her, that she too would be healed. But it didn't.

And that was why the wand needed to be broken, if not than her plan wouldn't work and there was no way of helping Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy or the whole of Narnia for that matter. But Narnia was much more than just a magical land that she had been trapped in, it was now her home. It had been ever since their arrival.

Alex ignored the stare from Peter as he looked in fear, instead, she watched as the axe circled back around and hit multiple of their attackers before situating right back into her bloodied palm and she got right back to it, fighting through the masses as if there wasn't any pain in her shoulder.

But the pain was there.

Only the hope of winning was stronger.

And that was one of the many reasons Peter felt the way that he did about the girl with hair as white as the clouds and eyes as grey as the iron armour on her body. For she was more than her scars, more than her weaknesses and much more than her strengths; she was Alexandra Dawson.

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the battle is not over yet!