The Last Tree In Narnia

7. Healing

The horses were given to the most severely injured, and even though Rhea was one of them, she opted to give up her horse to someone who needed it more than her.
The beginning of the journey was tricky, and she had to lean on Caspian for support, for she wasn't quite strong enough to walk unaided.
But the minute her feet touched the dirt of the forest, she instantly felt better.
She wanted to stop and heal properly, but the rest of the group wanted to keep moving, as they were still too near the Telmarine castle to stop.
So even though she was well enough to walk on her own, she still hadn't fully recovered from her time as a Telmarine prisoner.

The group continued walking for the rest of the night, and even when the sun was in the sky, they did not stop.
Rhea had no idea where they were going, until they entered a large clearing in the middle of the forest.
At the far end of the clearing was a large stone structure, which Rhea recognised immediately.
She had been there once before, as a very small child.
Her parents had taken her to that tomb, so that she could see Aslan's stone table for herself.
The stone table was famous in Narnia, as it was where Aslan had risen from the dead, after being killed by the White Witch in place of King Edmund.
So it was a very important site for all Narnians, and Rhea could see why they had made it their battle fortress.

When they reached the entrance to the tomb, several people came out to meet them.
The first was a young girl, who Rhea assumed was Queen Lucy, the youngest Pevensie child, as she was the only one Rhea hadn't met yet.
"What happened?" Lucy asked.
"Ask him" spat Peter as he threw a cold glare at Caspian.
"Me?" Frowned Caspian.
"Peter, it wasn't his fault" insisted Susan.
"She's right. You could have called it off, there was still time" admitted Caspian.
"No there wasn't thanks to you. If you had just stuck to the plan, then those men might still be alive right now" replied Peter.
"And if we had just stayed here like I suggested, then they definitely would be" pointed out Caspian.

"You are not in charge here. You called us, remember" snapped Peter.
"My first mistake" replied Caspian coldly.
"No, your first mistake was thinking that you could actually lead these people"
"Hey! I am not the one who abandoned Narnia"
"You invaded Narnia. You have no more right to lead than Miraz does. You, him, your father. Narnia is better off without the lot of you!".
Caspian screamed and pointed his sword at Peter, who raised his own sword in retaliation.

"Stop it!" Shouted Edmund, as he helped Glenstorm the centaur, lower Trumpkin's body to the ground.
Caspian was too angry to be around Peter, so after sheefing his sword, he headed inside the tomb leaving the others behind.
To Rhea's suprise, Nikabrik followed Caspian, instead of waiting to see if his friend was going to survive or not.

Rhea knelt down beside Trumpkin, and tried to hold back the tears. As he had still not yet woken up.
Trufflehunter came out from the crowds to join them, and he placed his paw on Rhea's good shoulder, giving her the support that she needed.
Lucy ran forwards and removed her healing cordial from her belt.
She then poured a tiny drop from it, into Trumpkin's mouth.
At first nothing happened, but then Trumpkin's eyes flicked open.
"You're alive" squealed Rhea in excitement.
"It would seem so" mumbled Trumpkin, as he pushed himself up into a sitting position.

"What are you all standing around here for? The Telmarine's will be here soon enough" continued Trumpkin, as he stood up.
He then thanked Lucy for healing him, as the crowd around them dispersed and began to head inside the tomb to begin preparing for battle.
Only Rhea, Trumpkin, and the old kings and queens stayed behind.
"I was so worried that I wouldn't get to see you again" admitted Rhea, as she stood up.
"Well there is no need to fret, for I'm fine" insisted Trumpkin.
"I wanted to thank you for trying to protect me from Miraz, back in the dungeons" replied Rhea.
"I once promised to keep you safe, and I will continue to keep that promise forever".

"How is your shoulder?" Peter asked Rhea, as he looked at the bolt sticking out of her.
"Oh, that. It hurts, but not too badly" answered Rhea.
"Do you need us to take you to a medic?" Offered Susan.
Rhea shook her head, "No thanks. I can heal myself just fine... Would you like to see?".
"You can heal yourself?" Questioned Edmund.
"Yes, by drawing energy up from the ground" revealed Rhea.
"Show us" encouraged Peter.
Rhea pulled out the bolt from her shoulder, and she winced as her blood began to flow more rapidly from the wound.
"Watch what happens now" she said with a grin.

Rhea knelt down and placed her hands onto the grass. She then closed her eyes as she allowed roots to grow out of her hands and into the earth.
She gasped and opened her eyes as she suddenly felt the energy from ground begin to surge into her body.
The sensation was unlike anything she had ever felt before.
She'd drawn power from the earth in the past, but she had never felt the ground respond in such a way before.
Rhea assumed that it was her closeness to the stone table, that was making her feel so powerful, as it was surrounded by deep magic.

The magic in the earth flowed into Rhea's body, rejuvenating her, and filling her body with water from the earth's soil.
She watched as the skin around her wound began to patch over, and the leaves around her face began to turn green once more.
"You should stop now" instructed Trumpkin.
But Rhea didn't want to stop, for she liked the feeling of the earth giving her power. It made her feel more alive than ever.
"You must stop, Rhea. You know what happens when you take too much energy from the earth" continued Trumpkin.
"What happens?" Quizzed Edmund curiously.
"She can pass out or accidentally drain all the energy from the soil and leave the ground barren" answered Trumpkin.

Rhea sighed as she knew that her friend was right.
She withdrew her roots from the ground, and allowed the excess energy to flow out of her.
Rhea then stood up, and as she did she wobbled slightly, as she adjusted to not having the energy from the earth support her anymore.
"Are you alright?" Questioned Peter, as he took hold of Rhea's arm to steady her.
"I'm fine. In fact I..." Rhea faltered as she felt the trees begin to whisper to her.
She closed her eyes as she tried to make out what they were saying.

"What's she doing?" Asked Edmund.
"Shh" hissed Trumpkin.
Once Rhea had deciphered the message from the trees, her eyes flung open.
"What did the trees say?" Questioned Trumpkin.
"Danger. Caspian is in danger. Something bad is going to happen... I can feel the White Witch. She is returning" revealed Rhea, as she turned her head to look at the tomb.
Without stopping to think, all of them withdrew their weapons and charged into the tomb to rescue Caspian, and stop the White Witch from rising again.