Artemis and Caspian: The Awakening

Chapter Eight

Lady Azura sat on her throne, her brows knitted tightly together. She felt like falling apart, but she managed to put on a small, strained smile for the sake of her people. One of the realm's shamen stood beside her Lady, murmuring prayers and rubbing old fortune telling beads.

"Anything from the gods Leia?" Lady Azura asked with a small quiver in her voice.

"No my Lady," the shamen answered sadly opening her eyes. "They have remained quiet." Lady Azura nodded nervously in response casting her stare to the ground. A tense anticipation hung in the air. Both women feared the worst from the upcoming battle. A Celestian man ruined their mock vigil when he came bursting through the throne room doors.

"My Lady!" he panted breathlessly, "A lookout has spotted the Guilamontian army, they're almost here!" A new wave of bravery ran over Lady Azura as she shot up out of her seat, her gaze ice cold as she marched over to the man.

"Tell the army to get into positions, have them be ready within the next hour," she demanded. The man nodded curtly and bolted out of the room. Lady Azura turned and shot a nervous glance at Leia.

"Anything?" she whispered in vain knowing what the answer would be.

"No my Lady," the shamen solemnly said and hung her head. Lady Azura nodded gravely and paced out of the room to get herself ready, she could only hope that the gods were watching over Celestia. She muttered a small prayer and entered her chambers, war was coming.

...

Lord Cerberus held his hand up, signaling his army to stop. He peered cautiously into the giant forest before him and snorted to himself. He had no idea why his soldiers were so terrified of this place, it was nothing but a bunch of useless trees, easy to obliterate just like the people who hid within them. Duke Arioch rode up next to him dressed in a gleaming suit of black armor, a dangerously sharp sword dangling from a belt at his side. "The men are awaiting your orders Sir."

Lord Cerberus smiled wickedly. "Charge into the forest, kill every person who resists capture. Find her castle, ambush it and threaten the life of that useless Lady Azura." Duke Arioch sharply nodded and turned to the massive Guilamontian army that swarmed around Celestia.

"You heard your Lord!" he cried over the swell of voices before him. "Kill the rebels, make the forest floor run with red, show no mercy, find the Celestian castle and take her Ladyship as a prisoner." Duke Arioch was met by a roar of voices who cheered on their fearless leader.

"Guilamont!" Lord Cerberus screamed as he whipped his horse around to face thousands of bodies, bloodthirsty and anxious to fight for their kingdom. "Charge!"

A bugle was played and thousands of warriors charged into the forest bellowing their battle cries. Lord Cerberus whooped in delight and grinned with anticipation at Duke Arioch before galloping into the forest himself. The army flooded every area of the forest like a swarm of bees. Lord Cerberus threw himself into the fray and unsheathed his sword looking around wildly for a Celestian whose blood he could spill. After a few minutes, the soldier's roars turned into confused murmurs. There wasn't a Celestian in sight. "Where are they?" Lord Cerberus hollered angrily swiping his sword through the air. No one answered. Then above the silence, a brave foot soldier spoke his mind.

"My Lord, maybe they fled?" he piped up daring to look his Lord in the eyes. Lord Cerberus let out a yell of frustration and swung his sword back. The foot soldier dropped to the ground, petrified. Lord Cerberus swung his sword down and the man began to convulse on the forest floor, waiting for death to come. Instead, Lord Cerberus stopped and laughed sickeningly, putting his sword back into its sheath.

"Well then, if Lady Azura is too much of a coward to face me, then I declare the whole of Celestia for Guilamount!" A victorious cheer rose from the group. Duke Arioch rode up beside the Lord to intecept his moment of glory.

"My Lord," he stated "This is too strange, I remember these woods. The Celestians, they.." Before he could say another word he was interrupted by a scream from a man a few meters away. The army started to whisper nervously amongst themselves. Another scream echoed through the woods.

"It's a sneak attack!" Lord Cerberus screamed to his surrounding army. "Take cover and find those wretches, they're somewhere in the trees!" The soldiers, with their courage and adrenaline renewed, yelled in response and began to unsheathe their swords, running with them into the dark. Out of thin air, hundreds of Celestian foot soldiers appeared and began disarming the surprised Guilamontian army.

Someone cried "Above us!" as arrows rained down from the canopy with deadly aim, piercing the hearts of many unfortunate soldiers below.

"See where those are coming from!" Lord Cerberus barked to Duke Arioch running his sword through an exposed Celestian man.

"Yes my Lord!" Duke Arioch shouted before leading a small group of soldiers into the trees. All around him Lord Cerberus could see his soldiers struggling for dominance. As he sliced the head off of another Celestian something on the outskirts of the battleground caught his eye.

Shadowy hands appeared through the dark and grabbed unsuspecting warriors. He couldn't see anything but he heard their cries for help before their corpses were thrown back onto the battlefield. Maddened, he dove into the chaos slashing his way through the masses of soldiers fighting for their lives. He swung his sword viciously through them, not caring whether it was the enemy or one of his own. He finally made it to a place where two trees parted slightly, revealing an area of complete darkness. Lord Cerberus dismounted and leaned in. He listened as closely as he could through the cacophony of noises happening all around him. He swore he heard someone whispering. Before long two hands appeared again, grabbing him firmly by the shoulders. Surprised but ready Lord Cerberus wiggled free from their grasp and grabbed his sword, barely missing the hand that receded swiftly back into the darkness. Lord Cerberus shoved his hand between the trees to catch whatever had attacked him but felt nothing.

"This has to be some kind of sorcery," he barely managed to whisper before he felt a knock on his side.

A small but fiercely determined Celestian foot soldier wearing prayer beads and a black cloak wielded her spear around, ready to plunge it into his neck. With lightning speed, Lord Cerberus lept to his feet and with one powerful stroke, pierced her leg. She let out an agonizing cry as she fell to the floor, helpless to do anything but cry in pain as she lay in a pool of her own blood. Lord Cerberus spotted a nearby Guilamontian man and grabbed him, shoving him on top of her.

"Finish that," he sneered. He turned to leave and grinned to himself when he heard an eerie crunch as the man's boot came down on her windpipe. Lord Cerberus had turned his back to the trees to wipe the spray of blood off his mouth. Before he could do anything else a pair of hands came out and grabbed him, placing the steel of a sharp knife against his neck. Taken off guard, Lord Cerberus looked around wildly for his sword and realized it was out of his reach.

"I won't tell you this again, get out of my realm and I might spare your miserable life." Strands of raven hair tickled his nose. This voice was hauntingly familiar. From endless council meetings and peace talks, the Lord knew exactly who it was.

"Lady Azura," he said in a voice that made every part of her body shiver in disgust. "So we meet again."