As I promised, this chapter is all about the Ranger's Apprentice group! It took me forever to sit down and type it all up. I had to finish up some AP Gov homework that took a long time to finish, but I finally managed to find the time to get this done. This is the longest thing I've written from Halt's point of view, so I hope it turned out okay.

Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin or The Ranger's Apprentice Series.

It had taken Halt and Will three days to reach the Gathering Grounds, a place where the Rangers met each year to exchange any news that they had. Along the way, Halt and his new apprentice had run into his former apprentice, Gilan. Between Will and Gilan, Halt was about ready to pull his beard out. The two were constantly joking around with each other, making fun of Halt, and asking as many questions as they possibly could. It was with great relief that Halt realized that they had finally reached their destination.

When they arrived, Halt noticed that the grounds were filled with their normal bustle of activity. The small clearing amongst the trees was filled with various Rangers running about. Small, one man tents were lined up in neat rows. Columns of smoke could be seen rising into the air from the cooking fires. In the distance, Halt spotted an archery range with several Rangers practicing their archery skills. Along the side of the clearing, small and shaggy Ranger's horses were grazing.

Halt sent Will and Gilan to go and find them a decent camp site. While they were doing that, Halt traveled to the very center of the camp where a large pavilion had been set up. He needed to inform Crowley that he, Gilan, and Will had finally arrived.

Approaching the tent, Halt weaved in and out of various other Rangers, nodding his head in greeting to a few of them as he passed by. Once inside, he looked around for the Corps Commandant. He saw the man standing by a table, talking with some of the other men. Halt walked over towards the man.

When he arrived, he waited for Crowley to look up and notice his presence. With him being a Ranger, Halt did not have to wait long. "Halt, you finally arrived! It's good to see you again."

"Hello, Crowley. Gilan's here too. I sent him with Will to go and get our camp site set up," Halt responded.

Crowley nodded his head. "I forgot that you had gotten yourself another apprentice. How's he doing? Oh! I've got something to give you. Hold on one minute."

Halt continued to stand where he was, watching as the Corps Commandant searched for whatever he was looking for. It took him several minutes to sift through the papers and maps that littered the table before him, but he eventually found what he was looking for. Smiling, Crowley handed a letter over to Halt. "This arrived right before I left to come to the Gathering. I don't know why I ended up with it since it's clearly marked with your name, but it doesn't matter I guess. You received it in the end."

Halt raised his eyebrow, curious about who the letter was from. He very rarely received any personal letters. Usually, he only received various reports from other Rangers about what was going on in the surrounding fiefs. He muttered a quick good-bye to Crowley and then exited the tent.

With the letter firmly grasped in his hand, Halt made his way over to where Gilan and Will were sitting. He accepted the cup of coffee Gilan handed him before going to sit on a log close to the fire. There, he opened up the letter he had just been given.

He was about to begin reading it when he heard, "Halt, what do you have there?"

Halt sighed. There was a reason he didn't take on too many apprentices. They always asked too many questions. Looking over at Will, Halt answered, "It's a letter."

"Oh. Who's it from?"

Once again, Halt sighed in exasperation. "I don't know yet. You haven't given me time to figure that out." Will gave him an apologetic look. Halt turned his attention back to his letter. He was surprised at what he read.

Halt, it has been many years since we have last spoken. However, I am writing to you now with an important request. Here in Camelot recent events have become troubling. A Knight of Camelot was just returned to us dead. Normally, this would not be too concerning, but the events surrounding his death are rather curious. When I examined his body, I found no markings that indicated the cause of his death. The only noticeable feature of his body was his facial expression. His face was frozen into a mask of terror. The knights that brought him back reported that they had been following some strange tracks through the forest. They had also talked to several people who claimed to hear howling coming from the woods at night.

I'm hoping that I am wrong, but his death reminds me of several that occurred many years ago when your own kingdom was going through a war. If I'm right, then Camelot is facing something that they have never dealt with before. Please, if you have any information pertaining to the Kalkara, tell me. Your old friend, Gaius.

For a moment, Halt stared down at the letter. If what Gaius said was true, that could only mean one thing. Getting up from the log he was sitting on, Halt walked back towards the pavilion. He ignored the questions Gilan and Will asked him, instead concentrating on reaching Crowley. He rushed passed many people on his way, ignoring them when they greeted him or asked him something.

When he reached Crowley, he roughly shoved Gaius' letter into his hands. "Read this. I have a feeling that we might have a problem on our hands." Halt watched Crowley's face as he read the letter. He could tell that Crowley was just as surprised as he was.

"What do you think this means?" Crowley asked.

"You know just as well as I do what this could mean. If the Kalkara are out once again, that must mean Morgarath is up to something again." Halt answered.

Crowley let out a sigh. "We knew he was going to try something again one of these days, but you would have thought it would be against Araluen, not Camelot. What could he gain by going after Camelot?"

Halt paused before answering to gather his thoughts. "I honestly don't know. The only possible reason I can think of is that he's made an alliance with someone. Whatever his reason, it's going to mean trouble not only for Camelot, but for us as well."

"What I don't understand is how we didn't notice he was up to something. Surely one of the Rangers would have noticed something was going on." Crowley said.

"I was thinking the same thing. If he's only sent out the Kalkara, then that might be why. There's what, only two of them left now? And they weren't going after people here in our kingdom. It is completely possible that we could have missed them."

"Halt, I want you and your apprentice to travel to Camelot and go after the Kalkara. Make yourself known to King Uther and explain the situation to him. I'll have Gilan tell Barron Arald where you've gone and another Ranger will look after your fief while you're away. It's important that we stop Morgarath early while we still can."

"Will and I will leave as soon as we can." With that being said, Halt left the pavilion for the second time that day and headed back to the camp site. When he arrived, he spoke to Will saying, "You need to pack your stuff back up. Crowley's just given us a mission. We're to leave immediately."

"What's wrong, Halt?" Gilan asked.

Halt turned to look at his former apprentice. "You'll need to get ready as well. Crowley will need you to run some errands for him. As for your question…" Halt paused, not sure what to say yet.

"Halt?" Gilan asked again.

"We've just received word from Camelot that a Kalkara might have been sighted, which means only one thing. Morgarath is up to something. Will and I are being sent to go and deal with it."

Halt watched as Gilan's mouth dropped open and a puzzled look came over Will's face. Halt, more than anything, was not looking forward to facing the Kalkara, but it had to be done.

There's the end of another chapter! Please tell me what you thought!