The Birth of a Ranger

Chapter Thirteen

It was the day of her initiation and after five long years, she longed for this to be over with. She hadn't been given any information other than she needed to be ready to hunt but didn't know what. She suspected as soon as she was set free for the next twenty-four hours she would know almost immediately.

She rushed through the fort to pick up her gear only to find that no one was there to see her off. She was on her own that day. She didn't wait to see if anyone had meant to see her off but was all too aware of the eyes on her as she geared up with deadly quickness. Ren, Zundel and Jamie all sat at the training yard, eyeing her knowing her fate that day. She took two throwing knives, the last of her gear and stashed them in her hilts.

Murmurs floated behind her as she moved out. All of her gear was dull and she hadn't failed to notice. Once she got to the gate a Ranger put his hand on her chest stopping her, glancing behind her to see a motion to let her go and she nodded her head to him before heading out.

When she cleared the fort it was almost immediate who she was tracking by the smirks on the faces of the two gate guards. She was tracking another Ranger. A groan escaped her lips and she took off to begin the long twenty-four hours she knew she would be gone.

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It had only been two hours into her hunt and her stomach already growled from the amount of running she had done. She knew she was being toyed with and had seen this part of the forest three times already. He was leading her in circles.

Her senses didn't fail to notice the fresh blood on a nearby plant and she paused, switching the hand her bow was held in and rubbed the blood onto her fingers, smelling it and even tasting it. It wasn't animal blood, it was human blood.

She didn't appreciate being toyed with and knew her assassin's lurked nearby wanting to talk to her but quickly noticing she was in the middle of the most important event in her life, save for possibly getting married one day. That was a possibility she didn't dare think about after Kieleth.

She had been distracted when she caught sight of an arrow flying towards her of which she caught and chucked back. Glaring long and hard in the direction it had come from only to see nothing. Her skills were still honed and she certainly wasn't stupid.

She hoisted herself up onto a nearby tree and took to the trees knowing she would stay out of sight better that way and even her assassin's would lose her. Good. They couldn't know where Annuminas was yet. Possibly not ever.

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That night was long, cold and much dreaded. She didn't rest. Hadn't ate and certainly didn't get but a moment to rest. They ran through the harshest of terrain, the Ranger already one step ahead of her but she knew exactly where he was. She wasn't oblivious and when arrows had been shot she smiled, thankful to have something to do other than run. She was all too thankful to be able to toss her daggers as well, chucking them where the arrows came from.

His arrows however, were not blunted like her own and were very much so sharp. Taking an arrow was not her goal this night, she couldn't, wouldn't take any chances. She lifted her head and came out from the tree for cover and fired with such deadly precision she heard a grunt when it hit.

She had become a warrior honed for battle and the fact she had been trained by the Akiyama as well, made her a force to be reckoned with and dared anyone to challenge her.

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Dante was tired, worn out and ready to collapse by the time she had gotten back to the fort. She was dirty but surprisingly didn't smell. Her long brown hair, once in a tight braid now hung all around her face leaving small strands braided clearly from being up and running all night.

The Ranger she had run in with and tracked through the night only chuckled and backed up when he saw her collapse to her hands and knees, panting and out of breath. A pair of boots approached her head and, while she wanted to look up she only held up a hand and a finger. "I just...need...a minute." Her hand fell when she was done and she struggled to gulp air down, painfully at that.

The boots turned out to belong to her father and he whistled silently and laughed. She hated that she was being laughed at but she supposed it could be quite amusing to see a Ranger so exhausted she couldn't stand. He offered her a hand of which she took to get to her feet shakily. She also noticed the increase of Rangers in the fort. A surprising amount of Rangers at that. When she was on her feet and stood up to face him, Harbarad came to stand at her father's side, handing him she couldn't yet see and took a small step back.

"When I took you in years ago, it was just to keep a child safe. I never thought I would take her to be a daughter and I never thought she would decide to follow in my footsteps." A smile appeared on her face as she sat and breathed heavily, dirty and bruised. "Dante Aurelius, having excelled above and beyond I, having sponsored you for this initiation, present you with the Silver Leaf of the Dunedain."

In his hand rested her new pin to replace her bronze pin and she felt her breath leave her body, even for a moment. She had done it. She was officially a Ranger. "May you wear it well and continue to represent us and continue to live as one of us. Congratulations Ranger Dante Aurelius, welcome officially to the Dunedain."

A smile tugged on Dante's lips and she couldn't hold it back any longer, letting it show fully. She held the pin in her hand with such pride and accomplishment she didn't know what to say. She felt like hugging her father but given the crowd held herself back from doing so.

"Er ner ten' i' nosse!" Connor shouted out and was echoed by the rest of the Rangers. Then he pulled Dante into a hug that even she returned gladly. She was now their official family, a part of a dying breed but it didn't stop her from feeling happy about the force she was now a part of.

"You don't know how proud of you I am, to have seen you grown these past years. You've earned this." Her father spoke to her with pride that was reflected in her own eyes.

The Rangers in the fort all gave her congratulations and while she didn't feel overwhelmed she didn't know what to do with her status. She was a Ranger. She had done it. The words kept repeating in her head and each time she smiled brighter and brighter.

At some point she had snuck away from the gathering and now sat on some back end of the fort, her cloak in her hand as well as her pin. She was quick to remove the bronze pin and pocket it and replace it with her silver leaf, a sign of her accomplishments.

Before she could stop herself, as if turning a page to a new chapter in her life she grabbed her knee high hair, pulling the rest of it from its braid and grabbed her dagger. She took one long shaky breath before slicing it through her hair in one fell swoop. Her hair fell to the ground and she looked up at the sky. Her head felt lighter with her now shoulder blade length brown hair.

Of all the things she could have done in her life, this was truly an accomplishment.

She had done it. She was officially Family. A Ranger.