A/N: Ahem, yeah that was a little while ago, no excuses this time, I was just enjoying the holidays with my family. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and I wish you all a great 2021!

To make it up to you guys I made this chapter a bit longer than usual.

Thanks to the wonderful AreiaCannaid I regained my confidence. A real shout out to you, not only for all those encouraging reviews but also for really helping me find my way in this fanfiction jungle. Because of you I could finally make the decision I was so afraid to take.

So to answer the question from the last chapter: I'm going to write more, and step a little further from the original idea. I hope you all are going to like it, and if not well luckily there are a lot more wonderful fanfics in the world!

Let's get finally back to our amazing friends….

Chapter 13

At the worst possible moment Will couldn't hold it back anymore, a slight cough escaped his mouth just as MacLeod was inches away from him. The man turned around and saw the cloaked figure lying the grass. Without even seeing the face, the commander knew exactly who it was.

"Oh boy, we're in trouble now. It seems I found my toy again."

Will knew it was impossible to fight back at this stage. He was too badly injured already and he had witnessed the brute force of this man in front of him.

He felt a shiver go down his spine when MacLeod lowered himself to Will's eyelevel. The man didn't show the faintest sign of mercy and Will knew that losing the battle would probably not have improved his mood since the last time they were eye to eye.

"You know I get really sick of you rangers. Always in our way like the little rats you are. This time you won't escape so easily." He said with a devilish grin.

Will couldn't hold back a response, "Well thanks to your men I discovered the Skandian ships just in time to win the war. This place is crawled with Araluen soldiers and Skandian warriors. They will catch you in no time after you killed me."

A hand grabbed his throat and it became harder for Will to breath. But he could still hear the words from the commander very clearly, "Oh but I'm not going to kill you, my friend. No it's not going to be that easy for you."

He dropped Will back on the ground and Will had to cough to get his breath back. Will had known that riding to war had immense risks as he was still recovering from his previous encounter with the Scotti.

When he had fallen off Tug at the battlefield he had accepted the fact he would probably not return home alive. But somehow the words of the commander made his skin crawl. He had witnessed the cruelty of this man firsthand and he had no desire to endure it again.

His training had always taught him to remain quiet in every situation. He knew that remaining calm was the key to success. But today his fear won the battle.

Will tried to crawl away from the commander, ignoring the pain from his body. Horace had promised to come after him soon, so maybe he would be nearby.

"HORACE!" he screamed but his struggles were cut short. MacLeod had decided he didn't appreciate the struggles from the man in front of him. With a quick but harsh blow he knocked Will out.

"Seems like I will have to wait a little longer to play with you. First I'll find us some cozy place where no one will hear you." He mumbled to the unconscious man.

Soon he heard footsteps coming closer, he drew his sword ready to defend himself against the Araluen scum. He was surprised when he saw the men coming into the clearing. They were Scotti soldiers running from the battlefield.

The man leading the group quickly informed the commander. "There are two Araluen on their way commander. A knight and one of those rangers."

MacLeod glanced to his side where Will was still unconscious in the mud. He didn't want to give up his chance for revenge. But letting Araluen scum leave unharmed was against his whishes as well, they hadn't won the war but he wasn't planning on accepting the defeat so easily.

"I take this one to castle Macindaw, we still occupy it and it will take the army several days if not weeks to reclaim the castle. You hold these two men back, I want them captured or otherwise killed." He took a small dart from his coat and handed it over to the leader.

"It's a poisoned dart, knocks someone unconscious within seconds. I only have one so use it well." The other man nodded and took the dart. He and his men gathered around to wait for the two Araluen, while MacLeon fled with Will on his back.

Gilan and Horace had spurted into the woods following the trail left by Tug. They had rode in silence because both were terrified of what they would find. In the distance they could hear the sound of hooves drumming into the ground.

Gilan held his hand up directing Horace to take cover, as much as that was possible on that gigantic horse of his. Blaze however had already smelled the newcomer and let out a soft greeting. When Gilan focused his eyes he saw the grey shaggy horse running towards them.

It was Tug, but Will was not on his back.

Distracted by the frantic horse in front of them, neither Gilan nor Horace had seen the group of Scotti soldiers in the distance watching them. The Scotti soldiers ran of to warn anyone they could find on their way.

Tug was clearly distressed and eager to show the two men the way to his master. He knew there was no time to waste and Gilan didn't consider calming Tug down. He spurted Blaze into a canter and followed Tug to find Will, closely followed by Horace.

After a short sprint they heard Will's scream carried through the woods. Gilan knew a ranger would only break his silence when they were desperate. He nudged Blaze to go even faster, they had no time to waste anymore.

Horace had gone white as a sheet when he heard his name screamed in the woods. Guilt flooded through his veins. He should have stayed with Will, none of this would have happened if he had protected his friend as he was supposed to. It was the second time he had left Will alone and the chances of his survival were getting slimmer by the minute.

They reached a small clearing when Tug suddenly halted. This must have been the place where he had last seen Will, Gilan realized. . Horace and Gilan dismounted their horses and told them to stay put. Gilan's senses were sharper than ever. He saw every track made in the last few minutes, heard every rustle of the leaves and even the smell of the forest around him gave him indications of what happened.

He saw the tracks Will had made trying to escape someone. He saw where Will had probably been knocked unconscious. He could smell the metallic scent of blood before he even saw it on the leaves.

What worried him more was the extra set of footprints beside Will's and his attacker. There was a horde of others prints all scattering to the sides of the clearing. The mark indicating that they had left not long ago.

Gilan let out a sigh, it was a trap, in their haste to find Will they had walked right into an ambush.

Horace had studied Gilan as the man observed the whole area. He could see the ranger suddenly stiffen and his hand going towards the hilt of his sword. Without even thinking Horace followed the movements and without the slightest trace of communication the two warriors stood ready with their swords, backs against each other to watch every place of the clearing.

In those split seconds, the Scotti warriors had emerged from the woods. Not expecting the two men ready to fight and not yet knowing they were going to fight the two best swordfighters of the whole kingdom.

It was a group of twenty soldiers against a knight and a warrior. For a normal human being it was probably a hopeless battle for the Araluen. However Gilan and Horace didn't back away. With the finest flexibility of their movements the two danced their way through the soldiers.

They were both entirely focused on their enemy, but somehow they were never more than a few meters apart. It was if a string was holding them close together, fighting side by side and giving each other support.

With ten soldiers left, the boys took their share. Gilan saw that Horace had picked the three more experienced fighters. The men before the ranger were clumsy oafs so he should be done with them in no time.

Gilan had managed to get two down before they could even blink but then he felt a sting in the back of his neck. He managed to pull out a dart and knew this meant trouble. His head became foggy instantly and he tried to yell to Horace but nothing came out.

The knight was still dueling himself and didn't see his friend falling down. Gilan felt arms grabbing him and he was taken away from the field, away from Horace.

Horace had decided to duel the three closest to him. Unfortunately they were all experienced warriors and had decided to give the knight hell. Horace stood his ground firmly, blocking and dodging every attempt of the soldiers to get him down. Whenever he saw an opportunity he swung his sword and managed to hit.

He could feel the victory against these three coming to his side, however he suddenly realized Gilan was nowhere near him like he had been during the entire fight. With the little distraction of his friend being gone he felt the blow to his head.

He stumbled back a few paces but soon regained his rhythm. Playtime was over, he needed to know where Gilan was and he had no time for these warriors anymore. With all his power and determination he swung around them making swift movements with his sword. All three soldiers fell down by the unforgiving sword.

Horace spun around and realized something terrible had happened. Not only Gilan was gone but there were just fifteen dead and injured soldiers on the ground. Five were missing and Gilan was nowhere to be seen.

He quickly scanned the ground hoping to find some answers about what happened while he was battling the soldiers. A small dart was covered in the grass, and Horace knew that there was only one possibility here.

Gilan had been abducted just like Will.

Halt had found the place where the Skandian army had held back the retreating force of the Scotti. As the battle had ended he could see the damage done by the war. Bodies from both sides were scattered around the field. It was a gruesome sight.

Soon he saw Erak and his crew celebrating the victory. He could have known Erak was here himself, that man wouldn't let a chance for a fight pass. Halt jumped of Abelard and walked quickly to the oberjarl. If anyone would know where that reckless apprentice of him was, it would be Erak.

The oberjarl smiled as he saw the grumpy old ranger approaching him. With a broad smile he hugged the little man, ignoring the protests.

"That was some fight, wouldn't you say! Although it surprises me these bastards could get this far with you running this country, don't you think." He laughed friendly, clapping the ranger on his shoulder.

Halt winced as the broad hand fell down on his shoulder, almost breaking the bones underneath him.

"Last time I checked, I was still a ranger and Duncan still king." He grunted.

"Hah, well that man might wear a crown, but even a king should acknowledge the real ruler here. When has he ever made a big decision without your permission?"

Halt decided to drop the subject. Monarchy was a delicate thing to discuss with someone like Erak. It was true that King Duncan would never make a decision on his own, but that was also what Halt admired about his king. Duncan knew where his weaknesses were and he used his most trusted men to fill those gaps.

Erak might be better than Ragnak as ruler, but still the Skandian traditions were hard to eliminate. A true ruler would probably listen to no one, unless they had no other choice. But it was not the time nor place to discuss that matter right now, and Halt had other things on his mind.

"Have you seen Will or Horace here? Or another ranger, taller than Will, carrying a sword perhaps?" Erak's face grew dark as he heard the question. He too had been worried about his little friend. When they rode into the battle, he had known Will wasn't up for it. But when the fighting had started he hadn't seen the boy anymore.

"I'm sorry to say that I haven't. He came to us to warn about the battle going on here. He wasn't feeling so well but insisted on going with us. I would have been foolish to try and hold him back, but I haven't seen him since."

Halt's heart dropped by hearing this news. He had secretly hoped that he and Gilan had been wrong and someone else had tipped of the Skandian forces. But this was the evidence that Will, severely injured, had made the trip all the way here and had also rode into battle. He made a note to himself to give the boy a good lecture about self-care.

He glanced around the field but even for a experienced tracker as himself he could never find out where Will had been, let alone where he was now. There were hundreds of footprints scattering to many places, a single boot could never be found here. He also couldn't find a trace of Horace and Gilan and a million scenarios went through his head.

Erak watched the older ranger as he observed the field. He had watched firsthand how rangers could come up with the most idiotic plans, but he realized that there was no way to find Will from here.

He put his hand on Halt's shoulder, more softly this time, and waited for the ranger to look at him.

"Maybe we should return to your base camp. There is a possibility that Horace and this other ranger have already taken him to the medical tents. He was injured after all." He hesitated to say the next words but he knew honesty was the way to go with this ranger, "it's also the place where they will gather the dead for a proper burial."

Halt's eyes went wide as he heard the last sentence. He had also considered going back to the medical tent to see if Will was already back. But Erak was right, they were already gathering the bodies from the field and maybe that was why Will wasn't here.

But no, it was not possible that Will, Gilan and Horace were all dead. His heart racing in his chest he spoke again, "let's go to the medical tents and find them."

In a haze he jumped back on Abelard and was followed by Erak and his men who were in need of medical attention. Halt tried to remain calm but his mind was racing. How could a simple battle turn out this disastrous.

Horace had walked in circles for quite some time now. He hadn't manage to follow the traces of the Scotti group that had captured Gilan. They had been smart to split up and take routes where only a ranger's eye would be able to follow them.

He slammed his fist into a tree, which hurt terribly but it didn't relief his frustration. He finally sat down as he asked himself again and again, "what would Will do?"

The sad fact however was that he didn't know what Will did in these situations. In times of need he only saw his friend go quiet and his brows coming closer together and then suddenly he would have an amazing solution.

Horace tried to imitate Will's face while thinking of a solution, maybe it was something in the facial expression that granted the rangers with such wonderful ideas.

But no, nothing came up and frustration rose again. He needed Halt right now if he wanted even the slightest chance to see his friends again. He stood up and walked back to the horses. Both Tug and Blaze were definitely on edge, they knew their masters were in danger.

Horace petted both of them trying to reassure them. "Ssh it's okay, we're going to find them. Come on we will get some reinforcements."

He gently pulled the reins but the two ranger horses firmly held back. They had been ordered to stay put and their training made sure that they did.

Horace let out a sigh, he didn't have the energy or the time to struggle with these stubborn horses.

"Oh come on Tug I have already given you the password once. Will is not here nor is Gilan so can you just listen to me?" it felt ridiculous asking the horse a question but he knew better than just keep on pulling the reigns.

His approach payed off as he felt Tug relax. The shaggy pony put his hand down and took a few steps towards the warrior. Blaze however was not convinced yet. Horace didn't know her password, but leaving her in the woods was no option.

Gilan would have his head if something happened to his precious pony. Horace decided to use his friend to convince the pony. "Tug can you please tell that bull-headed friend of yours that she needs to come with us if she wants to see her master again."

To his surprise Tug turned his head watching the other horse as if truly telling the message. When Blaze also took a hesitant step towards Horace, he was ready to take a little dance of joy.

Before any of the horses could reconsider their actions Horace led them away. "Let's find Halt guys." He said with a grin. Feeling confident in his decision once again.

Well I hope you liked the chapter, please leave a review.

I won't make any promises about updating anymore (we know how that ended last time…)

Stay safe, Trust your cloak and see you next time!