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Chapter Three: Assessments
Will was scared. He looked at Halt, aloof as ever, and tapped Tug's sides to inch closer to him and Abelard. The looming trees spread their hand-like branches over the path, obscuring the sun and casting dark shadows on the ground. Finally, the bushes cleared and the Gathering ground was exposed.
Around sixty Rangers, apprentices, and retirees sat gathered around a large central campfire. Will could smell the sizzling of a dozen spitted rabbits, the meaty flavor of pheasant, and the hearty sinew of a freshly-killed deer. The Rangers used their special spices to arouse enticing aromas which tempted Will's nostrils. Many Rangers helped themselves to the kafay shipped specially from Arrida. Several of the Rangers bellowed greetings to Halt and Crowley, and several other apprentices waved to Will.
Laughter emanated from the campfire, mingled with the voices of a normally socially reserved group finally able to let it out. Stories were exchanged and news spread around the circle like wildfire. Plates were heaped with boiled potatoes and slabs of deer meat, accompanied by tender greens and hearty gravy. Jugs of kafay, kafay, and more kafay were passed around for everyone to drink. Will tore his eyes away from the party he so wished to join to follow Halt.
Halt and Will set up their two-man tent and untacked their horses, letting them graze freely. Will watched Tug and Abelard trot up to their equine friends as Halt rifled through his bags to find his yearly report for the Commandant.
When he finally emerged, Will eagerly strung his longbow for the archery assessment. His black shafted arrows over his shoulder, he ran lightly to the archery range. The other apprentices were already gathered around the Ranger Alun, their observer.
Alun had them line up in front of the wooden targets, carved roughly out of soft pine to the shape of a human. A dot marked the heart, their target. Out of the blue, he yelled, "shoot!"
Will, his bow ready, reached for an arrow and shot his target, slightly to the right of the heart. The three other apprentices in his year fumbled to string their bows, then shot their respective targets. Their shots were all close to Will's distance from the center.
Alun chuckled under his cowl. "Well, Will gets points for being prepared! But that is not all we're testing. Walk with me." He beckoned for them to follow. They walked behind him for two hundred meters to the target line. Since Will had shot from the far left, he was first. Alun awarded him a nine. The other apprentices received eights.
Next, they retrieved their arrows and did complicated shots from strange positions. For one, they had to climb into a tree, shoot one arrow, then shoot two more while falling. Then they would run and shoot the final target while running away from it. Alun also had an hourglass filled with a few seconds' worth of sand, which he used to test speed-shooting. After this, he had them shoot for precision at the one hundred meters mark. They shot one arrow each, all easily burying their broadheads in their respective black dots. Alun smiled under his cowl.
"Now for something a little harder." He said, grinning to himself. Will and the other apprentices looked frightened, scared he might ask them to do something beyond their abilities. Alun broke the silence, saying, "You will now split the arrows down the shafts from the two hundred meters mark. You may start when ready."
The boys walked over to the two hundred meters mark grimly. Once at the line, Will sighted the shot, thinking about the conditions he was shooting under. He had determined from his previous shots that there was a slight north-east blowing wind. He selected an arrow, the sharpest he had, and knocked it to the string. Will grasped the bowstring with his right hand and slowly brought it to full draw. He sighted his target, then readjusted because of the gust of wind. Now the target was all he saw, the arrow sticking out of the heart, swaying lightly in the wind. He closed his eyes calmly, back straining against the force of the bow, then opened them unhurriedly. When he sensed the time was right, the variables all in place, he carefully let go of the string.
As if in slow motion, the party watched Will's arrow streak through the sky. Its fletchings set the shaft in a spiral motion, spinning the broadhead closer and closer to the target. Will could see, from his vantage point, a slight archer's paradox occurring in the arrow. But the sheer force of Will's longbow brought the arrow surging through the air without further hinderance. From the shooting line, they heard a sickening crack as the first arrow split in two halves.
There was no time for celebration, however, as the other apprentices had shot their arrows, too. Two arrows caught the heart mark but not the shaft, and one arrow came in too high but clipped the first arrow on the top.
After the archery assessment, Alun led them through their cartography assessment. For this, the apprentices had to draw in the fief names and major rivers of Araluen, not to mention the surrounding countries and seas.
Alun gave them their strategic assessments then started the knife skills examination. To pass this assessment, they had to be able to perform the double knife defense and have excellent throwing skills. Much like the archery test, they were lined up in front of a much closer row of targets. They each had their saxe and two throwing knives. They had to perform overhand, underhand, and side throwing to pass. Fortunately, their intensive Ranger training had prepared them for all the techniques Alun threw at them.
They had their hidden movement, silent walking, and horseback riding assessments, which were all very tiring, so when Alun finally called a halt, they were very happy. They unsaddled their ponies and joined the campfire.
AN: We hope you liked the chapter. Next chapter will be the initiating event of the main plot and introduction of our OC. Don't forget to review!
Happy reading!