Disclaimer: I do not own Ranger's Apprentice or any of its characters

Luvergirl of Books: Yes, you have a point but Halt wasn't hanged because then he couldn't do what I need him to do in this chapter. Weak excuse yes, but don't be confused! Along with that, different crimes would result in different ways of death.

Crowley shot into the square on Cropper. The giant crowd blocked his view for a moment but he stood on the stirrups and spotted the events. The man named Bryce was stepping onto the stage and Crowley realized he only had a few seconds. Looking around the mob, he didn't spot the person he was looking for. Panicking a little, he stood taller in the stirrups and saw Bryce raising the axe. He was about to call out when a movement at the far reaches of his vision caught his attention. In barely a second his gaze was sweeping over that section of the crowd and he felt his gut twist farther into a knot. A man dressed in simple farm clothes stood at the far edge of the left side of the crowd. He was raising a bow with an arrow knocked and it was pointed directly towards Duncan's heart. There wasn't time to reach him and, with so many people between them, Crowley couldn't risk shooting and hitting an innocent person. Drawing breath, he did the only thing he could think of.

Halt searched the crowd for his friend but saw no sign of him. Realizing it was all over; he took a deep breath but didn't close his eyes. He sensed the axe being raised above his head but didn't flinch; He merely held his calm expression.

"Halt!" Halt's head snapped up at the familiar tone of Crowley's voice. Not wasting any time, Halt rolled out of the path of the axe's course. The weapon thudded into the wooden block only a few inches from his head and he heard commotion starting. Ignoring it all, Halt searched for his friend and found him almost immediately. The commandant was pointing towards a man on the far left side of the crowd. Halt's gaze snapped onto him as he saw the bow raised and pointed towards Duncan.

Realizing what was going on, Halt got into a crouch and judged time and distance with an expert eye. In less than a second, he lunged towards the king and felt a brief flaring pain in his chest. The entire event took less than a few seconds and left everybody in a confused state as they watched his body land with a thud onto the wooden planks of the stage by Duncan's feet.

"Crowley, I want answers," Duncan demanded. They were in his study and Duncan was pacing while Crowley sat with his head in his hands. Duncan had just witnessed Halt fall to his feet with an arrow sticking out of him and blood starting to pool without any warning and then watched as Crowley shoved to the front of the crowd out of nowhere. Duncan had ordered the knights to get Halt back up to the castle as fast as possible and keep him in the royal infirmary until the mess was sorted out. The healers had admitted that they didn't know if Halt was going to make it and the next twenty-four hours would be the most crucial. They hadn't heard anything else.

"I know you do," Crowley said miserably. "But can they wait?" he asked as he raised his head. Nobody had told him of recent events in the castle so he believed he was responsible for not only Feller's death but now possibly Halt's.

"Crowley, he's probably still knocked out. He was shot with an arrow then slammed his head on the stage. Not to mention everything else he's been through. You have time to explain to me what just happened. He won't be waking up for a while," Duncan said with a strained patience. He knew that Crowley was going through a lot with Halt and so was he but he needed answers. He had just been shot at for crying out loud!

"I…he…I don't know where to start!" Crowley snapped as he raised his head. He was shaking slightly and couldn't think straight. The only thought that pulsed across his mind was that Halt was almost dead. "Sorry," he mumbled when he remembered Duncan was the king.

"It's fine," Duncan said as he took a seat across from the commandant. The torches set in the wall illuminated Crowley's distraught features. "Just start at the beginning. Tell me what happened at the cabin."

"It started long before that," Crowley said quietly and Duncan looked at him, confused. "Feller is…was…he was a…strong influence in my young life," he said, not going into specifics. "I ran from my home when I was apprenticed to Pritchard and as soon as I could, I got as far away as possible. When Feller came here, he rode into my clearing, perhaps just by chance. There…there was a small incident there and I asked Halt to switch places with me until Feller left. He arrived and I was going to leave the next day but Feller attacked us, out of a need for revenge or closure. He was fighting with Halt and Halt, he just wasn't in a good position. I…I was the one who stabbed him at the cabin. Halt, he just shoved me aside and grabbed the knife. I didn't want him to, I tried to get him to tell the truth but he wouldn't hear it," Crowley stammered. "Now he's almost dead!" Crowley said angrily and slammed his fist on the chair's arm. Standing up, the commandant began to pace to calm down.

"What's this got to do with the events that just occurred?" Duncan asked to try and distract the angry commandant.

"I went to Candell to prove that Feller would have attacked out of a need. No, I couldn't get anything to prove we had our differences in the past but I found papers showing he was acquainted with Morgarath," Crowley said and pulled out the pouch out of his pocket and tossed it to Duncan. "There were rumors before the war that Feller was an assassin with Morgarath so I took a shot in the dark. I found these letters between the two and then some other papers with names on them. Feller is continuing Morgarath's work and he came here to deal with you. There's an entire assassin operation going on in Candell," he said.

Duncan opened the pouch and pulled out a random page. It was a letter and he skimmed it over, he'd look over it more thoroughly later. Crowley was still pacing, his thoughts running at a million miles a minute. Duncan set the papers down on his desk.

"If Feller was an assassin for Morgarath and he really was carrying on the work, then something needs to be done. Though not right this minute as we need to know more. And if Feller did attack you at the cabin and the kidnapping was all a rouse, which I believe fully, then your actions at the cabin can be justified. Though I don't think it'd be enough to excuse Halt's actions of late," Duncan said. Crowley stopped pacing and went to ask the obvious question. "I don't think I should explain as I'm not certain on the subject myself," he said. Crowley frowned but accepted it. "Now what happened at the execution?"

"Feller sent two men to finish you I think and then he came to make sure they would follow through. I only saw one of them when he pulled the arrow but the other would have been close by. In the confusion I fear they may have escaped but Will and Gilan took off after they saw the arrow in Halt. I think they saw the man who shot it," Crowley explained. "Now…now Halt's going to die because of me," he said in a suffering tone as he collapsed back into the chair.

"It won't do any good to think like that," said Duncan in a somewhat confident voice but Crowley heard the underlying misery. "You couldn't have predicted this would happen. You did what you could and that was that. Halt was moments away from getting his head chopped off, you may have just saved him. Now go," he added. "Tell me if he wakes up."

"And if he doesn't?" Crowley asked as he stood. Duncan sighed.

"Tell me," he said and Crowley exited the room.

Please review, DON'T KILL ME THOUGH BECAUSE I DID TAKE SOME MERCY ON HALT! I MEAN, YEA, HE MIGHT DIE NOW BUT HE STILL HAS A HEAD AND HE SAVED DUNCAN! YAY!