A/N: OLAF! It's me, IFYOUCOULDFLY! So when we last saw our characters…stuff went down. Hehe…don't hate me for that cliffie! Lots of you made guesses on what was gonna happen…thanks for that! I just wanna hurry up and write, so I'll go ahead and do the disclaimer: King Duncan: You must be kidding. Me: WHAAAT? King Duncan: I'm king of Araluen, and you want me to do a DISCLAIMER? Me: Well….um…. King Duncan: Whatever, I'm leaving. Me: Aw. Poop. So I guess John Flanagan owns Ranger's Apprentice, not me, and all that jazz. *sigh.

-CHAPTER EIGHT-

*Will's P.O.V.*

The young Ranger cried out in pain. "GILAN!" Three people shouted, one of them being Will. "No, no, no!" Will cried, tears running down his cheeks as rushed over to meet his friend.

The arrow was lodged in his shoulder, but suddenly, that didn't seem to matter. "Will…you're okay…" Gilan whispered tentatively. "But you're not!" Will shouted through his sobs. "I'll be fine, Will." Gilan said as Will pulled out the arrow. "It didn't go in deep, it's already feeling better. I'm just glad you're safe."

Will stared at him, confused. "But I-" abruptly, he was cut off by a horrible sound: a bell ringing.

For a moment, his eyes clouded over, and he could feel reality slipping away. In a desperate attempt to stay conscious, he grabbed Gilan's shoulder.

"AUGH!" The Ranger cried out in pain, and Will was jolted back into reality. For a moment, all was fine, but slowly, the effects of hypnotism began to creep back in. "STOP! NO!" Will screamed, falling to the ground. He clutched his head and shook it, as if trying to shake of a monster. "NO! NO! NO!"

Only feet away, Halt watched in desperation as the boy who was a son to him writhed on the floor. "Stay strong, Will!" He cried. In opposition, Vasanistis yelled, "Just relax Will. Relax. Relax."

Slowly, the Ranger calmed down. "Yes, my Lord?" He asked feebly. Vasanistis smiled. "Good, you're back. Now kill them." Will slowly rose to his feet, a helpless look on his face. "Will…please…" Horace whispered.

The young Ranger reached for his bow, but stopped. In a small voice, he whispered: "No." Across the room, Vasanistis frowned. "What did you say?" He asked, confused. Will kept his gaze on the ground, slowly picking up not his bow, but another choice of weapon. "No. No, no, no, NO, NO!" He screeched, and flew across the room at his former master, saxe knives in hand.

Vasanistis was ready.

Halt, Horace, and Gilan could do nothing but watch as Will desperately tried to kill Vasanistis, who evaded every attack. It was, in retrospect, an uneventful fight, with each opponent constantly missing, but for the four spectators, it was the most nerve-racking event of all. Finally, after many failed attempts, one of Will's knives struck home.

Vasanistis screeched in agony as the blade sunk deep into his chest, tearing apart his skin. Will was caught off guard by his sudden reaction, and in that one tiny moment, the son of Morgarath was upon him.

"You." He snarled, holding his sword high above his head. "You are going to pay." Will closed his eyes, bracing for impact. "I'm going to die now." Will thought helplessly. "I'm going to die." Suddenly, the weight was ripped away, and he hear Vasanistis cry out in pain. He opened his eyes and nearly gasped.

Brutus was lying on the floor, and Vasanistis was gone. Will rushed over to the burly torturer, grasping his arm.

"I remember now." Brutus whispered. "I had a wife. And a son. He took them away from me." He shuddered in pain, then continued. "You let me remember. Can-can you find them? Let them know what happened?"

Will nodded sadly, tears forming in his eyes once again. "Good. They live in…in a town. Called Larkshire." The man burst into fit of strangled coughing, and Will grabbed his arm tighter. "I let him get away." Brutus croaked, and Will smiled softly. "It's OK. You saved my life." He said, wincing as Brutus began to hack again.

Abruptly, he stopped, and a warm smile spread across his face. "Thank you, Will…" he whispered, and he was gone.

Tears in his eyes, he stumbled over to Halt, Horace, and Gilan, easily slicing their chains. Once they were free, Halt and Horace ran to Gilan. The wound was bleeding slightly, but was not serious at all. "I missed. Thank God." Will muttered. "I was aiming for your heart." Gilan nodded reassuringly. "It's alright, Will. Can't blame you.

Once Gilan's wound had been dressed, the three turned to Will. Unexpectedly, Halt was the first to move. He wrapped his arms around his former apprentice. "I was worried." He said, and that was enough. Will began to cry again.

Gilan and Horace joined the embrace, and for a second, all was right. Finally, however, they pulled away, Gilan and Horace beaming, Halt looking slightly awkward. Will glanced out the window and sighed. "There he goes." Will mumbled, spirits sinking.

"And here we go!" Gilan cried, speeding off. "Amazing." Halt mumbled. "That dumb Gilan was just shot, and there he is, running off like an overjoyed little kid." However, he followed at a run.

Will and Horace shrugged. Will, who was not yet ready to run, leaned on Horace and hobbled quickly towards the door. Just as they were about to leave, however, the young Ranger stopped. "Just a second." He said, then stumbled awkwardly towards Brutus.

Will noticed that Brutus had a wedding ring. Smiling sadly, he slipped it off and shoved it into his satchel. "Thank you." He whispered, then rushed out the door after his three best friends, eager to get back home and never see this castle again.

A/N: What'd ya think? Short chapter, I know, but I didn't want to cram too much crap in. Anyways, this isn't the end, in case any of you were mistaken. There MORE! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHahahaha….ha…ha. Umm….anyways…thanks for reading. Keep those reviews up!-FLY