Sparks Flying - A Ranger's Apprentice Story

Chapter Three

The journey to Anselm was much too slow for Will. For the entire three days it took him and Halt to reach Anselm, his instincts screamed at him to push the pace, to take off on Tug and ride as hard and as fast as he could to reach his wife. Only three things stopped him from doing so. First, he knew that it would likely injure, or even kill, his beloved, faithful horse. Second, he knew Halt would do everything in his considerable power to keep Will from taking off, and Halt would probably succeed; and finally, Will knew, deep down, that running himself down to such a physically and emotionally exhausted state would not help him help Alyss when they finally got to Anselm.

So Will, with very great difficulty, stuck to the forced march pace. He laid down to rest at night when Halt told him to, although he slept very little, and kept watch when Halt roused him. He ate the food Halt cooked, though it only tasted like dust and ashes in his throat.

Finally, Halt and Will reached the border or Anselm Fief. Almost immediately, they came to a fork in the road. Halt pulled Abelard to a stop, sliding to the ground to rummage in his saddlebag.

Will remained in the saddle, his hands tense on the reins. Tug pranced nervously, picking up his master's restless energy.

"Halt?" Will finally burst out. "Why are we stopped? Can we please get going?"

Halt fixed Will with a raised eyebrow as he pulled a map of Anselm Fief out of his saddlebag.

"You may think my navigation skills flawless, Will, but even I need a map to a place I've never been before," Halt said acidly, unrolling the map.

Chastised, Will dropped his head, but Halt wasn't done.

"And how were you going to find Rensdale?" he challenged Will. "Were you going to have Tug sniff it out for you?"

After Will was sure Halt was done with his tirade, he said softly, "I'm sorry, Halt. I don't know what's gotten into me."

Halt looked up, startled. Will sat motionless in the saddle, hanging his head in shame, and for a moment, he was once again the young, vulnerable fifteen-year-old boy Halt had taken under his wing all those years ago.

Halt's expression softened. He walked over to Tug and leaned against the small horse, looking up at his apprentice.

"Will?" he said gently. "Look at me."

After a long moment, Will lifted his eyes to meet Halt's gaze, and Halt was struck by the fear and the raw pain he saw there. Halt continued to speak in that soft, low voice, much as he might speak to an injured animal.

"It's okay to be worried about Alyss," Halt told Will. "It's okay to be scared out of your wits, wondering if she's going to be okay. What do you think I would be doing if I were in your place? If it were Pauline who might be dying?"

Will stiffened at the word 'dying,' and Halt mentally kicked himself, but Will answered almost immediately.

"You'd be frantic with worry for her," Will said, confident in his surrogate parents' love for each other. "You'd be doing everything in your power to get to her and help her."

"Which is exactly what you're doing," Halt pointed out. "Will, the very fact that you're so desperate to reach Alyss shows how much you love her. No one could ever doubt that. But if you kill yourself in your efforts to get to her, what would that do to her? She'd never forgive herself."

Will nodded slowly as he began to understand. "You're saying I need to take care of myself so I can take care of her."

"Exactly," Halt said. He reached up to squeeze Will's shoulder comfortingly, then glanced down at the map in his other hand. "Rensdale is about an hour's ride from here. Let's go."

He swung up into the saddle, directing Abelard south. At the fork, he took the road to the right. Tug followed, carrying Will, who was lost in thought.

As Halt picked up the pace, Will felt Tug break into a canter. The pace change startled him from his thoughts. A little more at ease, Will turned his face to the road ahead. 

A little under an hour later, the two Rangers arrived in the village of Rensdale. It was an impressive little establishment, consisting of a large handful of businesses essential to a rural community, like a blacksmith, a butcher, and a cooper, surrounded by ten or fifteen family cottages. 

Will's gaze was instantly drawn to what had probably been the largest building in the village, halfway down the dirt road that passed for a main street. Now, it was a huge pile of charred wood.

He pointed. "Halt, look over there."

Halt's gaze followed his finger, and his expression hardened.

Contrary to what Will, and probably Halt, had expected, the sight of the ruins of the Wyvern Inn actually began to give Will hope. 

He decided to voice his thoughts. Shaking his head in disbelief, he said, "I can't believe she survived that."

Halt gave Will a sidelong glance, trying to gauge his apprentice's thoughts. It took him a few moments to formulate a response. He finally went with a noncommittal "She's strong."

Will nodded, but before he could continue, they were interrupted. 

The Rangers' arrival had not gone unnoticed. A few minutes previously, the two cloaked figures had caught the attention of a group of small, grimy, barefoot village children playing in the street. Over the past few minutes, the children had shyly worked their way closer to the Rangers, whispering among themselves and staring openly at Halt and Will. Now, the apparent leader of the children, a girl of eight or nine with her hair in pigtails, finally worked up the nerve to speak to the strangers.

"'Scuse me?" the little girl asked. "Is one of you Ranger Will?"

Caught off guard, Will slowly nodded. He couldn't even begin to imagine how these children knew he was coming. Not unless they asked that question of every Ranger they came across. And if that were the case, why didn't they ask for Halt? Surely his mentor was more famous than he was.

Will's admission caused a flurried, whispered conference among the children. A moment later, his wonderings were answered. The little girl, who had been elected spokesperson, nodded once, and turned back to Will.

"Lady Alyss is awake, and she wants to see you."