The Path of the Brave [Edmund Pevensie]

Chapter XIII: A Sheep With Armour

"It's King Edmund, actually."

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The soldiers waiting outside worked as an hourglass. Every step closer they took and every noise they made was like a grain of sand falling inside the glass. Each grain of salt made the uneasiness Narnian's felt even more present.

And therefore, the desperation made the atmosphere inside the strategy room tense.

"Sending a little girl into the darkest part of the forest? Alone!" Trumpkin exclaimed, not even letting Peter finish explaining. "That is your great plan?" It was evident Lucy's dear little friend had come to care for her, at least a little bit. And he was not happy about having her wander in the forest looking for a legendary Lion King while a literal war was going on.

"We need Aslan. It is our only choice." Peter kept his calm. It was te first time in their whole visit he was actually listening to others' ideas. Apparently, the last battle's outcome was not only a blow to his ego, but to his heart too. By then, he would have taken any chance to avoid war and stop more Narnian's from dying. It showed he was not the arrogant type of royal Alex thought he could be.

Susan stepped forward, bow and arrows on her back, always. "And she won't be alone."

"Well, I'll come with you too." The man said, Lucy just smiling at him with innocence.

Only she had seen Aslan. She knew this was her fight. But she couldn't take everyone with her. "No. We need as many people here as we can." Trumpkin was not content with it, but he would not make her change her mind.

"Then we help you from here."

"Yes," Peter added. "We need to hold them off as Susan and Lucy get back."

The question was how. How could one hundred soldiers lead by kids defeat two thousand professional armed men and four catapults?

Miraz had been smart by showing them their numbers, trying to scare them. It worked, too. The only thing the people in the room could think about was the large army they had seen moments ago.

Except for Alex. She was thinking about her 'arrogant or responsible' theory about royalty, and how Miraz fit into it. 

He had always been one to believe himself to be greater than anyone else, even before becoming King. She could not imagine the growth of his ego now that a golden crown was placed over his head. Everyone applauding him, believing in him, admiring him... 

He could not resist it...

"I have an idea." She stood, breaking the silence and having all of the eyes in the room look at her. "Miraz is a tyrant and a murderer, but he is also a huge showoff, right?" She looked at Caspian for confirmation, and after receiving a nod walked towards the center stone which worked as a table. Peter was curious as to why that was relevant to their plans. "What I mean is, he showed us his army, tried to intimidate us, paraded in the front and center for us to see. This man cannot keep himself from showing how great and powerful he is."