This is my first attempt at writing a crossover. It takes place during the first Ranger's Apprentice book. As of right now, I don't know which season of Merlin this takes place in. I hope that whoever decides to read this will really enjoy it.
Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin or The Ranger's Apprentice Series.
Prologue
It was completely dark outside. The moon and stars were hidden behind a thick layer of clouds. However, the night was not silent. It was far from it. The sounds of branches breaking, leaves crunching, and ragged breathing broke the silence of the night. Occasionally, a loud howl could be heard coming from somewhere in the woods.
Gasping for breath, a man ran through the forest as fast as he possibly he could. He had to keep running. If he stopped, it could mean his death. As he ran, branches tore at his clothing, ripping his red cloak to shreds. His face was covered in small cuts. His hair was plastered to his head by the sweat gliding down his body. At some point, he had lost his sword, and its familiar weight against his hip was no longer there as he ran. That meant the only thing he could to save himself was to run for his life, and that was exactly what the man was doing.
Behind him, the man could hear the creature gaining on him. He could hear the sounds of the creature crashing through the forest; hear the sound of its breathing as it approached; hear the sound of it howling every now and then as he continued his flight through the forest. The man had no idea what the creature was, and he did not really want to know. All he wanted to do was make it out of his current situation alive, something that was beginning to seem impossible. With each step he took, he felt his body resist. He was exhausted, bleeding, thirsty, and absolutely scared out of his mind.
He longed to stop and rest, but he continued to push his body further. As he continued to run, he let his thoughts turn to what he had been doing earlier. His day had started out perfectly normal, but that had not lasted. It had quickly descended into a nightmare the likes of which he had never witnessed before.
Sir Andrew had been sent by Prince Arthur to handle a dispute in one of the small boarder villages. The dispute had been handled quickly, only requiring him to intervene a little bit. He had spent the night in the village, staying in the home of the village leader. He left early the next morning, eager to get back to Camelot and enjoy the comfort of warm food and a soft bed.
As he road along, nothing much happened. He met no one as he travelled, which was fine by him. He stopped a couple of times to water his horse and to eat a little food. When night came, he made camp in a small clearing. He had just lain down on his cloak to sleep, when he heard a sound in the forest. Getting up, he had grabbed his sword and tried to locate the direction the sound had come from.
Suddenly, a large body appeared out of nowhere. He had barely managed to get out of the way when the body flew past him. Whirling around, he prepared himself for a fight. Lifting his sword, Sir Andrew was not prepared for what he found himself facing. Standing in front of him was a creature that he had never seen before. It was covered in hair from head to toe and looked to be a cross of an ape and a bear, only it was walking upright. Out of the corner of his eye, Sir Andrew saw his horse get spooked and run away.
The creature in front of him raised an arm and swiped at him. Sir Andrew didn't react fast enough, and the creature was able to knock his sword from his hand. Defenseless, Sir Andrew did the only thing he could. He ran. He ran as fast as his legs would carry him into the forest. That was how he found himself in his current situation.
Sir Andrew continued to run. He stumbled along as he ran, tripping over hidden logs and getting his feet caught in roots and small holes. Eventually, his body gave out on him. He fell to his knees. Behind him, he heard the creature howl once again. Frightened, Sir Andrew tried desperately to get to his feet, but he only managed to fall again. In a desperate attempt to get away, he began to crawl forward as far as he could. He knew it was pointless though. The creature was almost on him.
Suddenly, Sir Andrew was sent flying forward as the creature landed on top of him. The creature rolled off his body and stood up. Sir Andrew remained lying on the ground, groaning in pain. Rolling onto his back, Sir Andrew looked at the creature standing before him. He was slightly confused. The creature had finally caught up with him, but it was not making any move to finish him off. Instead, it was staring at him.
Sir Andrew gasped for breath as he lay on the forest floor. As he was lying there, he became overcome by a sudden urge. He suddenly found himself with the desire to look into the creature's eyes. He had no idea why, but he found himself giving in to the urge's demand.
Bringing his eyes up to the creature's face, Sir Andrew locked his eyes with it. Immediately, he found himself frozen in place. No matter how hard he tried, he could not move his body in any direction. He tried to open his mouth to call out, but even that action was denied to him.
One thought continuously ran through Sir Andrew's mind as he lay on the forest floor. He was going to die. He was going to die, lying on the forest floor, killed by a creature that he had never seen before, and no one was going to know anything about it. Terror swept through Sir Andrew as he continued to stare into the creature's eyes. The creature stared right back at him, never blinking and never breaking eye contact.
His heart began to race at an unusually fast pace. It was there on the forest floor that Sir Andrew drew in one final breath before everything went black. Sir Andrew never woke up.
I will do my best to update this as soon as possible. Please let me know what you thought of this chapter.
