A/N: *Holds both hands in the air* please don't shoot me. I know it's been a long time again. For those of you still coping with me thank you so much, I don't know how I ever deserved all of your kindness.

Furthermore for those actually reading the AN (how sweet of you) I will explain (again) why I'm this late. As I said in the beginning of this story, when I started this I also started my Bachelor Thesis. It seemed like a good plan at the time, turns out it wasn't. For those of you considering writing fanfic and a thesis, just don't, you're just killing yourself.

However I'm finally finished (yeeey) and currently waiting for my grade, in the meantime I still got some courses but that's something I can manage. When I finished my thesis I was just drained from all energy and therefore I wasn't able to write anything.

But I'm back now, stronger and with more energy than ever, so without further ado let's finally get back to our fantastic characters.

Chapter 15

The group traveled on a quick pace towards the northern side of the kingdom. Trees covering them as far as possible. Halt had specially chosen the longer path through the woods instead of the plain fields. He knew that it was impossible to keep the Skandian warriors hidden but the woods would at least provide some cover.

It was surprisingly calm in the forest, which concerned Halt. He knew that a lot of Scotti had escaped and fled into the woods after the battle. He had expected to have run into some already but there weren't even traces of the enemy.

Normally he would have confided his worries with Will or Gilan and settle for some investigation. His ranger heart yelled at him to spread out and investigate the woods for remaining Scotti. However he had neither the people nor the time to investigate it. They had to keep the pace up to reach Macindaw in time.

Apparently his mind wandering hadn't go unnoticed. Without warning Horace and Alyss had decided to join the grizzled ranger in the front of the group. Horace looked up at Halt, knowing the look on his face.

"What's wrong Halt?" he asked ignoring the grumpy look on Halt's face. Halt decided it wouldn't do any harm telling them what was on his mind.

"It's quiet in the forest." He said without any further explanation, somehow thinking that Horace would immediately understand.

"Yes, that's quite nice, isn't it? I mean it would take a lot more time if we had to fight the Scotti all the way to Macindaw."

Halt raised an eyebrow, astonished by the simplicity of the knight. Sometimes the man was incredibly clever, but there were moment like this when he surprised Halt with his comments.

"And where do you think our friends have gone then?" he tried to enlighten the knight, to no avail.

"Vanished, I guess." Horace answered, he didn't see where Halt was going but felt the frustration grow.

"Vanished? Into thin air?" Halt tried again.

"Well no, they must be somewhere, but shouldn't we just call ourselves lucky that we didn't encounter them?"

Alyss had silently followed the conversation and had quickly caught on what was on Halt's mind. She too hadn't been worried at first by the lack of Scotti. But Halt was right, they hadn't vanished into thin air and the only safe way back to Picta for them was through Macindaw.

"You think they've regrouped at Macindaw, don't you Halt?" she asked with a clear voice, trying to hide a worries for their mission ahead.

Finally Horace understood the severity of the problem. Of course a whole army could reclaim Macindaw, but they were with a few people and if there were really tons of Scotti waiting for them it would be disastrous. His fears were confirmed by Halt, who was approvingly nodding towards Alyss.

"Indeed, I think at least a small part of their army are waiting for us there."

Gilan stared around in their cell. Will was still passed out against the cold wall. The irregular breathing started the worry Gilan more and more.

He told himself not to wake Will because the boy needed to rest. But in his mind he knew that he just didn't dare to try and wake him, fearful that Will wouldn't wake.

Just as Gilan started to wonder where the Scotti soldiers were, he heard footsteps on the stairs to the dungeons. He considered waking Will but he hoped that the Scotti would see how badly hurt he was and decided not to torture him further.

He slowly rose on his feet and managed to keep his face straight not showing any signs of fear. The Scotti man stopped in front of Gilan, only the steel bars keeping them from each other. Gilan noticed the blue paint on his face, which meant he was in a higher rank than the soldiers he and Horace had encountered.

The commander however did not have much interest in the ranger before him. He stared at the small figure in the corner of the cell.

"What's wrong with him?" he asked innocently.

Gilan figured this was not a random question. He saw the recognition in the eyes of their captor, and he instantly remembered that Will had been tortured by a Scotti commander.

He decided to play along with the innocent game and see where it would lead them.

"He passed out. I think he took quite some beatings during the battle." It took every fiber in his body not to show his disgust towards the man. But being polite might help Will in this situation, he thought.

The commander slowly turned his head towards the ranger and watched him carefully before he spoke.

"Oh I don't think he was injured at the battle. You see, he was my toy before the battle started but the little rat escaped. Luckily I found him again." The dark shimmer in his eyes turned Gilan's stomach upside down. This was not the way he planned the conversation to go.

Before Gilan could say anything more, the commander continued, "But you of course know that my dear ranger." He spat the word as if it was an insult.

"You and your sweet companion were following us. Luckily we got rid of the body of your companion so no one will be looking for you. It would be wise to speak the truth to me from now on. "

Normally Gilan would return a witty remark, even in a prison cell, but he was afraid what consequences would follow for Will. So he bit his lip and dropped his head, not losing eye contact with the commander.

His mind spun around what the commander had said about Horace. When Gilan had been taken down there were indeed a few man standing around Horace, but he knew the knight was one of the finest the kingdom had ever seen so it would have been almost impossible that one of the soldiers had managed to throw a killing blow.

There were two possibilities in this scenario, either the commander was speaking the truth and Horace had indeed somehow died at the hand of a common soldier. This meant that Halt would never know where to look and didn't even know they had been taken.

The other scenario was much more amusing, that the commander was lying and Horace had gotten away. Gilan knew that Horace would notify Halt about the situation, because the man had no skill at tracking at all. This meant that Halt was possibly on his way here so Gilan only needed to stall some time for Will.

With a little sign of his hand, the commander called the guards forward. He looked straight at Gilan and said "take the two rangers and bring them to the great hall. Oh and please wake my boy up before you come."

Gilan turned white as a sheet and once the door of his cell opened, he immediately attacked the guards. It didn't matter how skilled Gilan was, without his weapons, in a small area and surrounded by guards he soon found himself in the grips of two of the strongest guards.

The other guard walked towards Will who had been unconscious during the whole talk and fight. The guard pulled a bucket of water from the hall and threw it over the boy.

Will immediately woke up to a disturbing scene, Gilan was swearing and trying to wriggle himself from the guards and Will himself was being dragged to his feet.

Trying to clear his foggy head he turned to Gilan who was also being dragged from the dungeons.

"It's okay Will, everything will be fine I promise." He heard Gilan say.

"Still wondering how exactly." Will was surprised by his own feeble voice. He noticed that his strength was leaving him and right now he couldn't even say something properly.

The boys were dragged into the grand hall of castle Macindaw. Will had seen it plenty of times while he was undercover as a jongleur. It had never been the most welcoming place you could think of, however it seemed that the ambiance had degraded quickly with the arrival of the new inhabitants.

The large table had been removed and only a circular table stood lonely in the middle of the hall. On it was a large map of Araluen, probably retrieved from the archives in the castle.

The two rangers glanced around and both came to the conclusion that it was impossible to break free. It seemed that a large part of the army of the Scotti had decided to stay here as long as possible.

A foolish attempt of course, knowing the army of Araluen could easily defeat their broken army. Macindaw was a reliable fortress to protect against the north, it was never meant to protect against a army from the south. King Duncan would only have to give the word and Macindaw would be reclaimed.

Much time for alternative options to break free was not given as the big doors opened again and a new high officer briskly walked towards the group. Gilan didn't recognize the man but then he saw Will's eyes go wide.

Will had indeed recognized the man immediately. Hoping never to see him again after leaving the threat: if you come back here, you will be the first one I look for.

There he was standing in the same room. Not yet aware of the prisoners identities. Not knowing that a certain ranger knew he was screwed the moment he had set foot in this castle.

MacHaddish walked to his comrade MacLeod, turned around to face the prisoners and a gleam of surprise and pure happiness spread across his face when he recognized the injured ranger. He stepped forward ready to punch the boy that had caused him so much trouble in the past. A voice rang through the hall, stopping the former general in his movements.

"STOP, don't you dare touch him!" Gilan yelled. He saw the recognition in both the general and Will, but seeing the panic in Will's face made him lose his temper.

MacLeod clearly not in the mood for a fight decided to step between the two men. "Not now, MacHaddish, we have business here and we need them."

The ex-general nodded and lowered his raised fist, not quite content with the commander. But he knew he would get his revenge on the boy some way.

MacLeod took a step forward to the boys and pointed to the table with the map on it.

"We know there are more sneaky rats like you at the army. However our scouts didn't see them at the campsite." He turned towards Gilan meeting the steel in his eyes. Breaking those men individually was impossible, but luck would have it that they obviously cared for one another.

"Seeing that your position is far from ideal, mister Ranger. I would suggest you tell us where the encampment is of your little group. I have no intensions to hurt you, but that friend of yours has cost us dearly and MacHaddish or myself might slip in our restraint of movements."

Gilan felt his body go tense like a bowstring. He had expected to be tortured, humiliated and more here. But now they were threatening Will for information that was priceless. He knew too that most of the rangers had a camp far from the main army camp. Only Crowley, Halt, Will and himself slept had the main campsite so they were close to the king with new information.

Giving away the location of all the other rangers would leave them in great peril. They would have scouts around, but it was never enough to block a small army of Scotti warriors. Ten maybe twenty rangers could get injured or killed, leaving half the country without a ranger for its fiefdom.

But standing here between the cold sturdy walls of castle Macindaw, with Will severely injured next to him, Gilan began to doubt. Maybe the rangers could take care of themselves. He couldn't just sacrifice Will like this, there had to be another way.

While his mind was racing for possible loopholes, his eyes crossed those of Will. The exhausted look on his face betrayed the little time they had left. But still Will slightly shook his head, telling his friend not even to consider the option.

The communication between the rangers had been miniscule and was unnoticed by their captors. Trying to keep his face like stone and his voice as clear and certain as possible, Gilan spoke to the general.

"I will not giving you any information about our army nor our ranger corps. You are of course allowed to express your dissatisfaction on me if you wish." He tried to keep as much of the attention towards himself, hoping they would forget all about Will.

MacLeod's eyes squinted as he observed the ranger. He had seen the slight doubt crossing his face, but other than that the two had remained painfully calm. He also had immediately noticed Gilan's attempt to cover for the younger man, and was not fooled by it.

MacHaddish too had noticed the attempt, but was keen on getting his hands on the younger ranger. He stepped forward and drove a fist into Will's stomach, leaving him to double forward.

Will had seen the fist coming but was held by the two guards. He felt it land in his stomach and a blinding pain surged through his body. Only the hands of his guards kept him on his feet.

Trying to get ready for the next encounter with the fist, or maybe a foot perhaps this time, he heard the voice of MacLeod.

"Stop it, these men cannot by broken by force. I've seen how resilient this boy is with physical pain. We need to break them mentally." An evil grin spread across his face as he pulled a vial out of his coat. Gilan could only guess what was in it, but knew it couldn't be healthy.

MacLeod briskly walked towards Gilan facing him with a dark look. Even though he had was at the losing side, the ranger would not show fear. His eyes didn't betray any anxiety, his body not even flinching when the commander got close. Without realizing MacLeod lost the staring competition between the two of them, he couldn't look the ranger long in the eye. Deep down he feared the man in front of him and he wanted to bring him to his knees rather sooner than later.

Gilan cleared his mind from all thought. He knew he would break down if he started to think about their situation and Will's condition. Halt had taught him that remaining strong in the face of the enemy could make a difference between life and death. So when the commander stood in front of him holding the vial close to his mouth, Gilan refused to blink and stared deep in the eyes of his captor. He saw the fear growing and the man quickly turned his gaze towards the vial, and spoke.

"I give you one last chance, dear ranger. Where is the hiding place of the ranger corps?"

Gilan remained silent and only stared back at the commander. He prepared himself to be drugged with that awful potion. But was surprised when MacLeod turned his head away from him and nodded towards the other guards holding Will, who was slipping in and out of consciousness.

With a few fast steps MacLeod stood in front of Will and forced the liquid into his mouth. Will immediate awake, tried to struggle and spit the substance out. But he was forced on his knees and someone pinched his nose. With great reluctance he swallowed the potion and immediately the burning started.

First he felt his limbs and stomach ache like never before. Like someone was burning and stabbing him at the same time. The guards had released him, knowing the prisoner wouldn't escape anymore. Will rolled onto his side, desperately trying to ease the pain going through his body. He thought someone was screaming, but soon realized it was possibly coming from himself.

Then he sunk back further and suddenly he was back at the slave yeard. He saw someone in front of him offering some warmweed. Will tried to turn away from the image, but the man instantly reappeared into his vision.

"No, no I don't want it anymore. Leave me alone." He stammered still trying to get away.

Then his vision changed, a kalkara stood right in front of him. The burning eyes fixated on him, ready to kill its prey. Teeth sharpened and ready to jump at him. The pain in his limbs made it impossible for Will to run away, so he screamed as the monster got closer and closer.

Terrible visions placed one after the other, the terrible journey on stormwitsea, being flogged as a slave, Halt's dead body in front of him, Alyss getting killed by Keren. As the visions stayed close to the truth it became even more scarier. It felt like new memories were planted into his retina and in his brain.

Will quickly sat back on his knees, still feeling the pain in his whole body, and held his head with two fists. "It's not real, It's not real." He kept saying before finally his vision turned black.

When he opened his eyes again he was back in his cell. Will tried to get up but didn't find the energy to do so. He felt a hand on his chest softly pushing him back down, he looked up and saw Gilan's eyes. They were red and swollen, but most of all looking worried at him.

Immediately Will recalled what happened before he passed out. But what had made Gilan break like this, he thought. Something terrible must have happened while he was out.

"Gilan, are you okay? What happened?" he asked, surprised hearing his voice being hoarse like that.

Gilan's face turned in disbelief, "Am I okay? You've been through hell Will, I was worried sick. You didn't stop screaming and withering, I thought that potion would end you."

Then Will realized what must have happened. He had hoped the images and pain would have just been inside his head, but apparently he had shown his pain to everyone around him.

Will hissed in pain as he tried to sit up, Gilan saw his attempt and helped him trying to avoid touching any injured places. Then the younger ranger glanced back at him.

"What happened after I passed out? I mean you didn't tell them about the location did you?"

"No I didn't. But I'm starting to think that maybe we should. We have to get you out of here Will, they obviously use you as target practice and to be honest I don't think we'll get out alive if they continue like this."

During his explanation Will already had started to shake his head in disagreement.

"You can't, we have an obligation to protect the corps and we'll do that to our final breath. I believe Halt will come for us, so we just have to wait long enough 'till that happens. Besides I don't really believe they would let me go if we tell them." He slumped a bit down again, getting exhausted just from this conversation.

Gilan knew it was better to let him rest, but if they were to survive they had to be on the same page about information and plans.

"Will, I don't know if Halt's coming. I don't even know if Horace made it out alive, for all we know Halt could be thinking that we are dead." He whispered, trying to hide his voice cracking.

Will's eyes started to fall down but he managed to flutter them open one more time, "Halt will come. Promise me you won't do anything stupid just for me."

He tried to stare at Gilan waiting for the confirmation, however the pain and rising fever started to take over and before he could hear Gilan's answer he was already swimming in the darkness.

Gilan just tossled with the brown curls, covered in sweat and mud. Tears started leaking again as he knew Will was right. They had vowed to protect the kingdom and it's king, and of course the ranger corps itself. Will had been balancing on death's doorstep for a few days now and it would be a dishonor to him to throw that all away.

As Gilan pressed his head against Will's he whispered, "I promise Will."

A/N: So yeah maybe I put a little bit of frustration from my thesis in this chapter and let Will suffer again…. I'm really sorry, thing will get better (I think)

I hope you liked the story, please let me know in a review!

Stay safe, trust your cloak and see you soon!