Sparks Flying - A Ranger's Apprentice Story

Chapter Two

Will was on his feet in less than a second, shaking Halt's restraining hand off his arm. "Injured? Alyss? But how? Is she okay?" Pauline's gasp of shock barely registered in his ears.

"Will. Will?" He felt someone shaking him, and looked up to see Halt, an uncharacteristic look of worry on his face. "Calm down, okay? Let Brian tell us what he knows, and we'll figure out what to do next."

Will let Halt guide him into a chair. He sat there, shell-shocked, Halt and Pauline standing behind him. Pauline rested a comforting hand on his shoulder, her other hand caught in Halt's grip.

Brian continued his story. "For the past few months, Anselm has been plagued with a gang of criminals who kidnap village children and hold them for ransom."

Halt interrupted almost immediately. "Who's the Ranger at Anselm?" he demanded.

Gilan rolled his eyes. "Meralon," he said grimly, half to himself. He made a mental note to issue Meralon a reprimand - at the very least. Not only had he proved unable to handle this particular instance of criminal activity in his area of jurisdiction, he had failed to call in reinforcements to deal with the situation.

Halt cursed under his breath. "I should have known," he growled. "That slimy, foolish, idiotic, son of a -"

Pauline cut him off. "Focus, dear," she said almost grimly. "I agree with your opinion of this Ranger, but right now, we need to help Alyss. Gilan will deal with Meralon later."

Gilan nodded. "Oh, I will," he promised darkly.

Baron Arald signaled Brian to continue. The messenger said, "A local constable received an anonymous message warning him that the criminals and their leader, a man called Jory Ruhl, would be meeting at an inn called the Wyvern in the small village of Rensdale. The constable formed posse of the strongest men he knew, some of whom were fathers of the kidnapped children.

"The Lady Alyss and her retinue had chosen to spend the night at the same inn on their return journey to Redmont.

"Somehow, Ruhl and his men knew the posse was coming for them. Seeking a distraction, they set the inn on fire.

"The inn's guests, including Lady Alyss and her retinue, quickly escaped the burning building. They congregated in the saddleyard next to the building. Then, one of the guests noticed a face at one of the inn's upper windows. It was a little girl, trying to open the window and escape the smoke and the flames. As the guests watched, the room filled with smoke and the little girl collapsed, disappearing from view.

"Lady Alyss acted immediately. Before anyone could stop her, she rushed back into the building. A few minutes later, she appeared at the upstairs window, holding the little girl. She used her dagger to force the window open, and she shoved the little girl through, shouting for her guards to catch her. After the little girl was safe, Lady Alyss began to climb through the window, but before she could jump, the building collapsed beneath her.

"The other guests were able to remove her from the ruins of the building. She suffered some serious burns, as well as a broken arm and collarbone, and several broken ribs. When I left three days ago, several hours after she'd been rescued, she was unconscious, and the local healer expected her to remain unconscious for at least several more days."

Will sat, motionless. He could barely hear Baron Arald commending the man for his bravery over the rushing of the blood in his ears.

He blinked, and time seemed to blur before him. The messenger and Baron Arald suddenly disappeared, and he watched his friends huddle around the Baron's desk. He wondered what they were talking about with a kind of idle, detached curiosity; he could only hear the slow, steady thump of his heartbeat. And then his friends disappeared from his sight and his thoughts as Will closed his eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks.

Alyss. Beautiful, headstrong, clever Alyss. Somewhere, far away, she was hurting, and Will was absolutely helpless. He ached to be with her, to sit next to her as she slept, just to keep watch over her with his own eyes and know that she was still with him, still breathing.

Someone shook him, and Will's eyes flew open, his sight and hearing returning to him instantly. Lady Pauline was bending over him, sadness and concern in her warm, motherly gaze. Halt stood beside her, clearly worried.

"- in shock," Pauline was saying. When she saw his eyes open, she gave him a worried smile. "Will? Are you all right, dear?"

Will sprang up, almost knocking Pauline over. "Alyss!" he exclaimed. "I have to - Tug -" He darted for the door, but Halt and Gilan tackled him, pinning him to the wall by his arms. Will struggled, but the two of them were too strong for him to break free of their grip. Hopeless, he went limp.

Halt grabbed Will's chin, forcing his former apprentice to meet and hold his gaze. They stared into each other's eyes for a long moment before Halt spoke softly.

"Will, I need you to calm down." He somehow managed to impart the sadness and seriousness of the situation with every word.

Will finally found his voice. "Alyss," he said miserably.

Halt nodded. "You aren't helping Alyss in any way by losing your head like this," he said. "We're not letting go of you until you calm down. Take deep breaths."

When Will had finally calmed down to Halt's satisfaction, Halt and Gilan released him.

"We need to make a plan," Lady Pauline said.

Will began to measure the distances mentally, referring to the map of Araluen that Halt had made him commit to memory during his apprenticeship. "Tug and I can make it in two days. If we leave now -"

Halt cut him off. "No. Not an option."

Will protested. "But -"

"You'll kill yourself at that pace," Halt said, then reconsidered his choice of words when he saw Will open his mouth. He forestalled his former apprentice. "I'm sure you don't care about yourself at all in this situation. What I was about to say is, you'll kill Tug. You know he'll go past the point of exhaustion."

Will finally conceded, nodding. "Then what -"

Halt opened his mouth to cut Will off again, but Pauline interjected.

"You and Halt will take half and hour to prepare for the journey. You will leave for Anselm and travel at a forced march pace, no faster." She fixed Will with a stern look. "Gilan and I will follow you at dawn tomorrow with necessary supplies. I will send a message pigeon to Malcolm at Macindaw asking him what we can do for Alyss, and I will direct him to send his reply to Anselm. Does that sound viable?"

She stared at Halt, Gilan, and Will in turn until they each admitted that her plan was the best thing they could do.

Pauline nodded in satisfaction. "Halt, Will, you two go and get ready. I'll go and prepare the message pigeon." She turned to leave Baron Arald's office, pausing to kiss Halt quickly. "Be safe," she murmured, and left the room.

A/N: What do you guys think so far? I'd love to hear your feedback!