dun dun dun... back to the story...
Chapter 9… Murder.
Gilan walked around the clearing one last time, trying to make some sense of the tracks on the ground. But Gilan had no idea where he was and all the tracks were completely random, going off into many directions.
He had to find Will. He had too.
Suddenly he heard the sound to hoof beats nearing closer to his position. Acting on pure instinct he assessed that the sound was too far off to her or see him. He moved closer to the bushes and remembered that he didn't have his ranger cloak on so moved behind the bush.
It's about the skill of the person, the cloak just helps.
Went Halt's voice in his head.
The hoof beats were closer now, uneven and really loud. Gilan frozen in his position. Closer. Closer still. He watched as a heard of horses entered the clearing. He cursed as he realised that theses where the people that had forced… not helped him kill his people.
Gilan pushed that though out of his mind, it wouldn't help Will now. He scanned the horses, trying to see a rider maybe holding Will's body. Even at Will's age, he was still only a boy's size.
The riders pulled their horses to a halt in the clearing seeming to be doing something on the other side of the clearing to Gilan.
'The man's dead,' shouted a voice.
'What if he's pretending?' shouted another is the strange tongue that Gilan couldn't understand.
There was a bid thunk as if something had been dropped and then the rider rode out of the clearing a full pelt.
Gilan stood up from his crouching position and walked over to the other side of the clearing. He couldn't see what the people had been talking about. Maybe they hadn't dropped anything. Maybe he was hearing things.
No! they had dropped something, but what was it? He waked closer to the bushes around the edge of the clearing, when a little noise….
'Who's there,' whispered Gilan.
Another moan. Gilan walked closer to when he thought the moan had come from. And there it was, a body. A body still breathing. Gilan rushed closer to the man and rolled him over.
Will!
Will was in just a shirt and trousers, his cloak gone, and was also covered in tiny purple bruises. His head sagged to one side and droplets of blood ran down his face when Will had been thrown to the floor just now.
'Gilan is that you?' asked Will.
'Yes,' Gilan said, his voice shaking. Gilan again saw the tiny fifteen year old waking up from another nightmare. Him riding away from him in Celtia. Will looking up at him, asking what to do. Only a child.
No Will's a man now. Treat him like one.
'Come on Will, wake up please,' Gilan said.
Will frowned. He was awake, wasn't he?
'What happened?' Will asked.
'It doesn't matter Will just try a wake up.' Bu Gilan's words were lost to Will as Will's eyes were slowly shutting.
Gilan got up and lifted Will's small body onto his shoulder. He had to get Will some help. He had to take him back to Arluan now! Gilan got back to the middle of the clearing going the other way to the way the riders went.
'Are you sure?' asked Crowley from his standing position by the window.
Crowley, Halt, David, lord Anthony and the King where all in the Kings office, talking about the findings of the man. As it happened the man had told shocking news to all four of the men.
The King nodded, quickly casing a glance a David. The battle master was white faced and not looking at anyone's eyes.
'Yes the knight reported that ranger Gilan killed all the other men in the patrol,' the king carefully said 'killed' instead of 'murdered' which was the word in the report, laying on his desk.
'Are you sure, I mean it could have been someone wearing a ranger cloak?' said Crowley.
'Yes the man said the ranger had his cowl down,' muttered the king.
'Even so he could-,' Crowley stopped himself. The facts were plain. Gilan had committed murder, 'what do you want to do about it?' Crowley finished.
'I don't know.'
David stood up and walked out of the door. Slamming it behind him.
Crowley looked up to his friend, Halt. Halt had been silent throughout the whole conversation. Which was expected, Gilan was Halts first apprentice and almost son. As well Will was missing too.
'Halt what do you say about this?' asked Crowley.
Halt had his cowl up around his face and was standing, leaning on the wall, so that no one could see his expression.
'I'm not going to say that Gilan is guilty and till I talk to him myself,' Halt said. The new had come to shock to him too. It just wasn't in Gilan personally.
'Yes but we need something done now, people expect something done,' muttered Crowley.
'I know,' said Duncan.
Lord Anthony coughed and the King's eyes sung at him, 'My Lord with all the proof-'
'It's not proof if it only comes from one person,' Crowley butted in.
'Yes, with this report,' Anthony cast Crowley a glance, 'being the only proof we have, and your people wanting action taking, you must follow the law.'
'Why if we only have one side of the story-,' said Crowley.
'Crowley,' Said Duncan more than a bit annoyed at his friend. 'Halt Crowley that's all you can go.'
The two rangers left, Halt not saying a word the other muttering out loud.
'Anthony do I have too, he is David's son and as Halt said before it's just not like Gilan,' said Duncan.
Anthony frown he disliked it when the King pleaded with him, but law is law.
'I'm sorry my Lord but Gilan committed a crime, even if he is a ranger, but that fact just makes it worse. Gilan took an oath and has broken it.'
'Yes but-.'
'Not only that My Lord, he has committed murder, you just can't leave this action must be taken even if it upsets some people,' Anthony nodded towards the door.
The King shook his head Anthony was right but he still didn't want to do it, 'Fine what do I do?'
sad times... gIlan committed a crime now review or i will get Halt to shot you in the eye... and bros we all know he never misses