A/N: It's been so long since I last wrote any fanfiction and even longer since I was in this particular fandom. But I was feeling nostalgic and was digging through my computer the other day, looking at my old works, when I found this thing. I only had the first scene (which you will see below) written and I never published it. After reading through it, I decided to just try and make a chapter out of it and this happened. It also helped that I'm currently rereading the Ranger's Apprentice series/ listening to the audiobooks just because it's one of my favorite series of all time (and I must say, it holds up pretty well), so it made the experience of writing this all the more enjoyable.

I haven't really been writing much these couple of years because I've been so busy and decided to focus more on reading rather than writing, so pardon me if the writing seems really bad... I half expect that I've probably actually gotten a lot worse, lol. Still, I felt that I've read so many good stories, both original works and fanfiction alike, and I wanted to return the favor/give a similarly good experience to other people somehow and this seemed like a good place to start. This was one of the first fandoms I've ever been in, despite its small size, and this series holds a very special place in my heart, having helped me through some tough times. This, and considering the fact that I already have a chapter written and was planning on continuing the story on my own just for fun anyway, caused me to decide that I might as well publish this.

I will say reviews are very effective motivators and I would really appreciate some, particularly ones sharing what you liked/disliked about this, along with some honest criticisms considering how hard it is to get that nowadays. Keeping in mind that part of this was written two years ago and another part written much more recently after my long, two year break from writing, I warn you that there might be an abrupt change in writing style/quality/tone, but I tried my best making it flow... and had a lot of fun, so hopefully you'll be able to enjoy if as much as I have! Also, an important note, this will stray FAR from the canon. MUCH more supernatural stuff, some changes to settings and events and situation, etc. In other words, a VERY AU story. I didn't make any big changes to any characters of the basic premise of the story other than make Morgarath a much more powerful and intimidating villain though (I felt he was a touch anticlimactic and too easily taken down in the canon).

This takes place soon after the first book and is an AU from here on out. Also, since there's a lot with Rangers in this fic, it was necessary to create a couple of OCs as well as make up a couple of Rangers names to be mentioned. None of them are going to be a major part of this story however.

Now, without further ado, let the story begin! (Man I miss saying that!)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything (FANfiction... duh)

Chapter 1: Missing

"What's wrong, Halt?" Everything. Everything was wrong. His world was crumbling away before his very eyes and the floor was disappearing from beneath him. "Cat got your tongue?" It was more like a cold fist was strangling his heart, which had momentarily forgotten its function.

Morgarath's cold, delighted expression told him that his face revealed way more of the chaos tearing through his mind than he wanted it to, but he found himself rather apathetic to that fact. At the moment, all he could really bring himself to care about was the horrifying scene before him. Morgarath sat upon the King's throne with a disturbingly ecstatic smile stretching across his thin, ghastly face, and was surrounded by Wargals who stood on a floor littered by the corpses of dead royal guards. He barely took notice of any of these details however. Instead, nearly all of his attention was focused on the chain that Morgarath was casually twirling about, with what seemed suspiciously like a Bronze Oakleaf attached at the end.

That's not… He tried denying it, but deep down, he knew exactly what Morgarath had in his hands. It was the Oakleaf of an apprentice Ranger. But that Oakleaf could belong to anyone. After all, there were several missing apprentices and it was possible that the vindictive psychopath had just found the Oakleaf and was trying to scare him with it. These speculations, however, didn't last very long.

"You seem awfully interested in this thing." Morgarath drawled as he finally stopped twirling the Oakleaf around to dangle it before him for Halt to see. Halt had no apparent outward reaction to the question, but he felt as if he had just swallowed a stone which had consequently fallen to the pit of his stomach. As if sensing his dread, Morgarath smiled widely. "I bet you're wondering whose this was."

Was. There was little doubt left in Halt's mind that Morgarath knew exactly who that Oakleaf had belonged to and what connection said owner had with him. His face twisted into a murderous glare as he drowned himself in his fury to keep his panic in check.

"What have you done with him, Morgarath?" He breathed, the pressure on his chest too heavy for him to speak any louder. "What have you done with my apprentice?"

Four months earlier…

It had been about half a year since the "Kalkara Incident" and Morgarath had been strangely silent. There had been no sitings of Wargals, no raids, no signs of upcoming attacks, nor any news about Morgarath or any of his followers. In fact, according to most recent reports, there had been absolutely no activity within the Mountains of Rain and Night for months now. So far, it seemed that the uneasy peace between Araluen and Morgarath would continue, and the people were starting to relax as things seemed to return to "normal". To Halt however, this was exactly what he considered to be the most unsettling thing Morgarath could've done- nothing. It meant that he was planning, scheming, preparing for something.

Crowley clearly seemed to share his concerns as he had called together an emergency Gathering. In his message to Halt, the Commandant had even seemed to imply that he was considering sending a group of Rangers on an undoubtedly risky and perilous mission near or even to the Mountains of Rain and Night to gather some more intelligence on what exactly Morgarath was up to.

Halt suspected that he was a likely candidate for such a mission, but he had some reservations about that fact. It wasn't that he was fearful or even that he didn't want to go- and if Crowley were to select him, he would indeed go without hesitation- but he felt some slight concern about Will. There was absolutely no way he would dare to bring his apprentice along on such a dangerous mission, but at the same time, with a possibly approaching war and the threat of attacks from Morgarath, he wasn't sure if he felt at ease with leaving the boy at Redmont on his own. He was only a few months into his second year as an apprentice after all, so he was hardly fit to play the role of a fully fledged Ranger in Halt's absence and they wouldn't have any Rangers to spare to substitute for Halt in the meantime either. This meant that Redmont would already be a bit more vulnerable as it was. Will also needed to continue his training so that if a war were to suddenly begin, he would be ready, but there would be no Rangers available to mentor him should Halt have to go on a mission.

He sighed heavily. Apprentices. Sometimes, they seemed to be more trouble than they were worth. Speaking of Will, his usually chatty apprentice had been oddly subdued and quiet during their entire journey to the Gathering Grounds. Halt was well aware as to why this was, but still found the silence rather strange.

The boy was clearly also concerned about Morgarath's recent actions, or rather lack thereof, and the wild horror stories that he'd grown up listening to probably didn't do much to ease those fears. The fact that they were currently on their way to an emergency Gathering likely further alarmed him as well. Hopefully, once they actually got to the Gathering Grounds, Will would be able to get his mind off of such troubling thoughts, for such things were hardly worries that should concern an apprentice.

"Are we almost there yet?" Halt glanced back at Will at the question. On any other day, this would've been a typical inquiry from the boy, another way that he often filled the silence whenever he got bored or restless. Today however, the question seemed a lot more strained. Halt could also see the young man's brows scrunched together as his eyes shifted around nervously.

"We've been here before. I'm sure you could judge for yourself the answer to that question." He said lightly, pretending that nothing was amiss.

"Oh." Will said quietly in response, before silence descended upon them once more. He continued looking around nervously as inconspicuously as he could, but he wasn't doing a particularly good job of it. After a few minutes, Halt, deciding that enough was enough, finally spoke up.

"Is there any particular reason why you're looking at those bushes as if they're about to jump out and eat us?" Will's nervously shifting eyes focused on Halt at his words.

"You noticed? Am I really that obvious?" The apprentice asked, managing a weak, lopsided grin.

"You couldn't look more suspicious and nervous if your tried." Halt informed him in a deadpan. "Now spit it out. What're you looking around for?" Will's flimsy attempt at a smile gave way to a worried frown as he shrugged uncertainly.

"I don't really know." He said. "I just have this feeling that something's off, but I don't know what it is. It almost feels like there's somebody watching or stalking us. I know there isn't, but still. And yet at the same time, it also feels like things are too quiet and too empty. I'm not sure why, but I just feel like I should be keeping an eye out for something. I'm probably not making much sense right now, am I?" Will laughed to try and cover up his nervous, choppy sentences.

"Indeed you're not." Halt said after a brief pause as he seriously considered his apprentice's words. "But I think I understand what you're saying. Something does seem… different around here. It's probably because this is an emergency Gathering, however. Nothing to be worried about." Will seemed somewhat reassured at his words, but not completely convinced.

"But why's everything so quiet, Halt?" The Ranger frowned at that.

"What do you mean by quiet?"

"Well, I can't hear anything." Will said, his voice rising in pitch slightly. "A forest isn't supposed to be this silent. There's supposed to be the sound of the winds rustling leaves, animals, or at least some form of movement. But all I can hear is us." As he spoke, his eyes nervously scanned their surroundings once more. Slowly, Halt nodded in agreement.

"It is unusually still and quiet out today." He said carefully. "However, that isn't anything to be alarmed about. After all, it's hardly an indication of danger. And if there really were anything lurking about, Tug and Abelard would warn us long before it ever got near. It's probably just a combination of the weather, your nerves, and your imagination."

"I guess you're right." Will said, clearly not believing his words even as he said them. Halt mentally shrugged. There was only so much he could do to reassure the boy. Perhaps when they actually got to the Gathering, his apprentice would finally feel better. If he were to be honest, he too had noticed and felt similar things as Will had just described throughout the day. He had decided that it was all a result of his own concerns heightening his senses and intensifying some deeply hidden paranoia that he would never admit to having.

Still, his past experience told him that he shouldn't completely disregard his feelings, as the sixth sense was not something to be completely ignored. Indeed, it had actually saved his life several times in the past. In the end, he resolved to be more cautious than usual and be prepared for any trouble lurking about, but in a subtler manner than his apprentice. Perhaps it was for the best for Will to be a little worried and more alert than usual.

They were getting closer to the Gathering Grounds now. Usually, the familiarity of the area helped alleviate any unreasonable fears he had as his mind began to shift its focus onto his work and his fellow Rangers, pulling it away from any imagined worries. Today, it only intensified the heavy, churning feeling in his gut.

Just behind him, Will's eyes had begun shifting around again, perhaps less frantically than before, but not any less nervous.

The Gathering Grounds seemed a lot emptier than Halt had anticipated. They weren't particularly early, after all. In fact, he'd thought that they'd be among the last to get to the Gathering since the message from Crowley had been mysteriously delayed, causing them to set out a day later than they should have. And yet from what Halt could see, less than half the Rangers of the kingdom seemed to be present.

"Where is everybody?" Will asked from behind him as they slowly rode closer to the small cluster of twenty or so tents scattered around the Gathering Grounds. "I thought you said we were going to be late?" Halt, in a rare instance, found that he had no answers to the question. He could think of very few possibilities as to why over half the kingdom's Rangers would be absent for an emergency Gathering of all things. And of the few plausible explanations he could think of, none of them were good news.

"Go set up camp." He told his apprentice grimly. "I'll go try to find out what's going on." Wordlessly, Will nodded slowly before he rode off to do what his mentor had instructed him to. Halt on the other hand, hesitated for a moment, feeling an uncomfortable moment of déjà vu as he looked after his apprentice and then towards the command tent. So far, this Gathering was shaping up to be disturbingly similar to the last one, which had ended up leading them into a confrontation with a couple of Kalkaras. Just like last time, something was obviously very, very wrong, indicated by both the absence of so many Rangers and the ominous feeling swirling around in Halt's gut.

He pushed the disturbing thoughts to the back of his mind however, as he determinedly rode to the command tent. When he reached the pavilion, he dismounted from Abelard and could make out the sound of hushed voices speaking from behind the curtains of the tent. The other Rangers didn't seem to have even noticed his approach judging by the lack of a pause in whatever conversation they were having. Halt's frown deepened. Whatever was going on, it must be serious.

Drawing back the curtains, the Ranger entered the pavilion. Crowley, facing the entrance of the tent from where he sat at the large table at the center, was the first to notice him.

"Halt?" He exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise. "You're here!" There were three other senior Rangers present, all of whom looked equally shocked as they turned to face him. They all rose from where they sat around the table as Crowley gestured for him to sit with them. "We were worried that you wouldn't be able to make it." The commandant said, looking strangely relieved as Halt pulled up a chair to the unusually empty table. "What took you so long?"

"Your message was delayed and we ended up leaving a day later than we should have." Halt explained briefly. "What about the rest of the Corps? There's only around twenty Rangers here by the looks of it. Did something happen?"

One of the senior Rangers sighed heavily. "To be honest, we're not entirely sure ourselves what's going on. We were trying to figure it out ourselves just now." The other Rangers nodded in confirmation.

"How many Rangers are here right now?" Halt asked, barely managing to hide his surprise. It was very rare for a Ranger to admit to not knowing something, let alone a group of senior Rangers.

"Well, counting you and Will, twenty-three." Crowley said wearily, massaging the bridge of his nose. Then he stiffened and looked to Halt apprehensively. "Your apprentice is here with you, isn't he?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't he be?" Halt responded with a frown. Crowley relaxed a bit, waving the question away.

"I was worried he'd been caught up in all… this. Whatever's going on here. I'll admit, had expected some of us to be missing, but not quite so many. This is shaping up to be a state of emergency for the Corps at this rate… Speaking of which, I suppose it's about time that I explain the purpose of this Gathering." He said. Halt leaned forward slightly, listening intently. The three other senior Rangers looked at each other, having seemingly forgotten about that topic due to the unexpected absence so many members of their corps. Crowley, taking a deep breath, began to explain. "It all began shortly after the last Gathering, when some... disturbing things started happening. In fact, it started almost immediately after that Gathering, when Ranger Andross had allegedly seemed to disappear into thin air and was reported to never have returned to his fief." All of the Rangers at the table frowned, unable to conceal their unease at his words.

"You mean to tell us he's gone missing?" One of the Rangers asked, slightly disbelievingly. "How? Why's this the first we've heard of this?"

"I'm getting to that." Crowley said, gesturing for them all to settle down and listen. "I myself didn't get this news until two weeks after it happened. Apparently, the Baron of his fief had been under the impression that he was on a mission and it took him a bit to notice that something was off. Of course, when I finally did get the report, I immediately reached out to the Ranger of the nearest fief to Andross's to get him to investigate. After a full week of investigation, the Ranger, Ryan Wagoner, reported that he had found nothing. It was as if Andross had gone missing without a trace. All he had managed to find were vague reports of a man in what could possibly be a Ranger's cloak stumbling around the edges of the forest in his fief. I then waited for about a month for another report. The report never came." Halt frowned darkly at his tone and word choice.

"You mean to say…"

"That Ranger Ryan had also gone missing." Crowley confirmed grimly. "A couple days later, the Baron of Lodren Fief reported that nobody had seen Ranger Jordan or his apprentice for an entire week. At that point, I tried to send out the news of all this, as there was obviously a serious problem. But apparently, they all failed to reach any of the Rangers due a mysterious fire in the messenger room that burned down all the letters. Additionally, the day after, an apprentice of one of the Bird Keepers allegedly accidentally released most of the entire flock of messenger birds. The entire Postal Unit in Castle Araluen was in a state of chaos during the next few days as they tried to sort everything out."

"I remember hearing something about that." One of the Rangers said, frowning skeptically. "I had thought that it was unfortunate… Perhaps a little too unfortunate by the sounds of it now." Crowley nodded.

"That's exactly what I thought." He said. "So, I brought it up with the King and some of the other retired Rangers, and they all agreed. We then started to suspect there to be several traitors within the Castle itself. Investigations followed but we couldn't find any solid suspects or leads. In the end, it was decided that until we figured out who was trying to sabotage the Castle, we'd be careful with sensitive information, including the news of the missing Rangers. The King had been worried that such news and news of what was going on at Castle Araluen would cause panic, so we tried to keep such information from spreading too much. For the next few months, a few other Rangers went missing as well. Four to be exact, including another apprentice. About a month ago, I had sent a group of three rather experienced Rangers to investigate. They too, never returned or even reported. If you're keeping count, that's ten Rangers who have gone missing" A grim, shocked silence fell upon the room at that.

"And after all that, we still have no idea what's happened to them?" Halt eventually asked, breaking the tense bubble of silence. Crowley nodded.

"That's why I finally decided to call together a Gathering. I wanted to tell warn every remaining member of the Corps about whatever is going on in a secure place and to… take a headcount and make sure we weren't missing anybody else. As you can see, this was a lot worse than I had suspected. I was hoping that perhaps some Rangers were delayed and decided to wait another day to see if anybody would show up later. So far, it's only been you and Will. Considering that its rather late in the evening at this point, I'm starting to think that you two are going to be the last ones who will show up."

"Well now that we're all here and you've done your 'headcount', what exactly is the plan of action?" One of the senior Rangers asked. "With a war possibly coming up, this is hardly the ideal time for over half of the Rangers in the entire Corps to go missing nor is it a time for whoever of us are left to go searching for all of them." Crowley sighed heavily.

"I was thinking we can all put our heads together and try to make sense of the situation first. I've already started going over the list of missing Rangers so far to try and figure out a possible motivation or pattern to all this." He took out a piece of paper, presumably the said list of Rangers. "So far, I've noticed that a majority of the missing Rangers are the less experience ones. Additionally, almost all of the apprentices, with the exception of the now three present here now, have gone missing along with their mentors. About a quarter of the more experienced Rangers are also gone."

"And what do you think this means?" Halt asked, suspecting that Crowley had already reached the same conclusion as he had.

"Someone's been specifically targeting Rangers." The commandant said, his eyes dark with anger. "They've started off by picking off the potentially easier targets. And whatever or whoever they are, they've been rather successful by the looks of it."

Will wasn't exactly sure what he was supposed to do after setting up camp. After all, he still wasn't entirely clear on how a Gathering worked, with his only other Gathering experience having been cut short as soon as he'd arrived. He figured his mentor would probably be busy for a while in the command tent with the other senior Rangers. This, in addition to the fact that he couldn't see any other Rangers milling about, eventually led him to sit on the exact same log that he and Gilan had been sitting on during the last Gathering. This time, however, he was alone.

Where is Gilan anyway? Will wondered, his eyes scanning over the many tents surrounding him. Hopefully he's here… As if on cue, Will's eyes were soon drawn to a figure that seemed to suddenly have materialized from the ground at the edge of the Gathering. There was only one person in the Corps that he knew who could move like that. Will stood and quickly went over to the figure at almost a run.

"Gilan!" He called excitedly as he approached. Gilan turned to him and nearly dropped the bundle of firewood he'd been carrying in shock.

"Will?" He responded as he himself stumbled forward to meet the apprentice. "You're here! I was starting to get worried that you guys wouldn't make it!" Then he looked around, with some concern. "Where's Halt? You didn't come here alone, did you?"

Will frowned at that. "Of course not. He's just at the command tent. Why would you think that?" Gilan sighed in relief.

"Well, you've noticed the… vacancy here, haven't you? The senior Rangers haven't said anything about it, but we all know that something's wrong. An even-worse-than-we-were-dreading kind of wrong. I had been worried that something had happened to you guys." Will nodded solemnly.

"So nobody knows what's going on here, then?" He asked nervously, his eyes glancing around their surroundings for perhaps the hundredth time that day. The chill that he'd been feeling all afternoon seemed to be getting worse.

"I don't think so." Gilan answered uncertainly as they both walked back towards where they had set up their campsites. "But I think I might have an idea."

"What is it?" Will asked curiously when the other Ranger didn't elaborate. Gilan seemed unsure of whether or not he should tell the younger Ranger before eventually sighing.

"I'm not even sure if any of this is true." He said wearily. "At the time, I'd thought that they'd only been rumors, but the situation's changed now. For the past few weeks, I've heard whispers that the Rangers of some of the fiefs neighboring my own had gone missing. Vanished into thin air without a trace, they say."

"Rangers? As in more than one?" Will asked, disbelief evident in his voice. Gilan nodded.

"Yeah. I didn't believe it at first either. After all, what could make even a single Ranger, go missing, let alone two at around the same time? Additionally, that would be the type of thing that Crowley would report to everyone about. But judging by the look of things, I'm thinking there might be a kernel of truth in those rumors."

"Oh." Will said, unsure what to make of Gilan's theory. Then a rather frightening thought occurred to him. "You don't think all the Rangers not here have gone missing, do you?" Gilan grimaced at that.

"We better hope not. With the rising threat of Morgarath, losing over half of our Rangers now would be a disaster on a scale that the Corps and this kingdom hasn't faced in a long while." He said grimly. Will felt all the blood drain from his face. Seeing this Gilan's face lightened up slightly. "No need to look so worried, Will. At this point in time, this is all just speculation. Besides, the Ranger Corps has gotten through some tough times before. Us Rangers and this kingdom aren't going down that easily."

The chill that was hanging in the air seemed to be getting worse, but Will took a deep breath and managed to relax a bit as he nodded. "Right, of course." He said with as much conviction as he could muster. A few moments later, his stomach started growling. Gilan looked amused.

"Sunset's just around the corner. I suppose it's about time for supper. How about you go fetch us some water and I'll start setting up a fire?" Will nodded and as they got to their campsite, he grabbed a couple of buckets and went to the stream that ran through the Gathering Grounds.

About an hour later, the sun was beginning to sink below the horizon. Will and Gilan sat around a small fire, waiting for the water in a pot to start boiling. Every once in a while, they would both glance at the command tent, which Halt had yet to come out from.

"I wonder what they're discussing in there." Will said, yawning. "It's been a while." Gilan shrugged.

"Probably dreadfully dull senior Ranger business." He said cheerfully. Then he looked around. "I see some of the other Rangers have returned." Will following his line of sight managed to make out four dark, vague figures in the distance.

It suddenly occurred to him that he hadn't really met any other Rangers other than Halt, Gilan, and Merron from the previous Gathering.

"Do you know any of them?" He asked Gilan, pointing in the general direction of the dark figures. Gilan looked at him with slight confusion.

"Of course I do. Most members of the Corps know each other. Didn't Halt tell you that?" Will nodded, slightly embarrassed.

"I think I remember him saying something about that now that you mention it." He said. "I guess I'm just not quite used to the idea of so many people just knowing each other like that." Gilan grinned.

"Well, I'm sure you'll get used to it soon. How about I introduce you to those four?" Will managed a smile himself.

"Sure. It's not like we're doing anything much right now."

"That's the spirit!" Gilan said, laughing as he stood up. "Come on, let's go then."

Despite the rapidly fading daylight, the chill in the air became easier to ignore as Will followed his friend to the group of other Rangers.

But whether he liked it or not, the coldness and dread remained there still, even if pushed to the back of his mind. And somewhere deep inside, he felt his apprehension rise as they got closer and closer to group before them.

He wasn't sure how he knew, but something was... off. Missing.

A/N: And that's the end of that! It feels sooooo good to publish something (anything) again. I've been silently lurking around a variety of fandoms for so long and now I'm finally contributing something! Now, onto the thing that everybody's wondering/worrying about... updates. I would promise to get this done but if you do some stalking on me (idk why you would, I'm pretty boring and haven't done much) you'll find that I'm not good keeping such promises, considering the four two-year-old fanfics currently in an uncertain status sitting around under my profile atm. I will say I really WANT to finish this and feel like I could. I'm having a lot of fun reaching back into my roots and finally trying to write with these characters after so long. I've also already started on the next chapter and I'm about to get a lot more free time with summer on its way. The next update, based on these observations, lead me to give you an estimation of around two weeks (hopefully less?) for the next chapter and either weekly/biweekly updates thereafter. I'm really hopeful about finishing this one, so stay tuned (and maybe have some patience?)

Remember to leave a review! They always make my day and help motivate my lazy butt into continuing to write. Criticism of any sort is strongly encouraged and very appreciated. Until our paths cross again, I, EndlessStars, bid you farewell!