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Chapter 2 - Beatings

Once Halt went inside he gratefully sank into his favourite chair by the fire, which Will had kept going all day. Halt thought it was a bit unfair, his apprentice spent the day keeping the fire going while he spent all day with the Baron and Sir Rodney planning tactics and other useful things to send to the King to help him try and finally defeat Morgarath. I'll have to take Will along tomorrow, he thought, his thinking could be useful. For a while Halt just sat thinking then he realised Will hadn't come back in yet. Surely he must have collected his arrows by now.

Groaning slightly, Halt stood up from his chair and walked out onto the veranda calling out to Will. "I'm getting very hungry! When's din...?" the question remained unasked when Halt saw Will, and the man. Not bothering to use the stairs, Halt jumped off the side of the veranda and started running towards him.

"I don't think you'll take another step if you want the boy to live."

Halt stopped dead in his tracks as the man bent and lifted Will's head up by his hair, a dagger at his throat. He saw blood trickling down Will's face from a kick the man gave him.

"Put the dagger down," Halt commanded quietly.

"I don't think you are in any position to be giving orders, do you?" he then pulled Will into a standing position, by his hair, and held him up by it seeing as Will couldn't stand himself. Even though he tried not to, Will whimpered slightly and Halt felt his anger rising up.

"Let him go." he said darkly.

"Um," the man said, obviously having fun with this. "I don't think I will."

Halt took a couple of steps forward but the man applied pressure to the dagger and again Halt stopped dead in his tracks when he saw a trickle of blood.

"Don't," said the man.

Then Halt saw four other men come out of the trees behind the man, all of which started towards Halt. He took up a stance just in time as the first man swung at him. He missed and for a moment Halt was winning but four was too many, even for Halt. One punched him in the head hard and he fell. The men jumped on him and after and minute or so the man holding Will, who was feebly trying to get to Halt, said, "That's enough."

The men stopped beating and Halt slowly got up. Before he could go anywhere two of the men grabbed his arms and held him back, while the other two strode over to "Blondie", as Halt decided to name him, and stood slightly behind him.

"Please, Will," Halt begged, puffing slightly from the beating. "Please, let him go. Just please let Will go. Please."

"Fine." Blondie said bluntly and he dropped Will on the ground.

Will gasped on impact. Halt struggled, trying to get away from the men and help Will. But there was no escaping them.

"Be still," Blobie warned him. But Halt still struggled. Blondie turned to where Will lay and gave him a mighty boot. Will yelped and this only made Halt struggle harder. "I said," Blondie paused and booted Will again, this time in the head. "Be still!" This time Halt stopped.

Will lay on the ground, both hands holding his head. Between sobs he managed to gasp out, "You bastard." This earned him another almighty kick.

"Leave him be," Halt begged again. "Whatever you want have me instead."

"I'm afraid I can't. You see, my master ordered me to capture your apprentice alive and as much as I would've liked to kill you he forbade me to do so."

"And who is your master?"

"I can't say, but let me assure you. You two know each other."

He walked forward and stopped right in front of Halt, bending a little so as they were face to face. Halt tried to lash out at the man but he was held firm, so instead he spat in his face. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw the other two men kick at Will a few times.

"Look at me Halt." Blondie ordered, but as much as Halt hated seeing Will being treated like he was, Halt couldn't bear to know it was happening and just listen to Will's moans and whimpers of pain.

"I said look at me!" this time Blondie grabbed Halt's chin and forced him to face him. Then the two stopped beating Will. "If you say or do anything that my buddies over there don't like, poor young Will's gonna get it. Ok?"

Halt stared at him for a moment. "I understand." Halt said quietly. His eyes wandered a little to check on Will. As they did the two beat him again. "Hey!" Halt exclaimed. "I didn't do anything!"

"Look at me Halt."

Halt did and the beating stopped.

"Now," Blondie said. "This is how it's going to happen. I'm going to take your apprentice with me and you're going to stay here, so um, bye Halt." then he turned to the two holding Halt. "Take care of him."

Halt felt the men's grip shift, then one came around in front of him while the other was still holding him. He punched Halt in the head, left, right, left. When he decided Halt wouldn't be able to stand up on his own he nodded to the other man dropped Halt and joined in the beating as well. Eventually Halt fell unconscious and the two walked back over to Blondie.

"Pick him up." Blondie said pointing to Will, who was also unconscious thanks to another good kick to the head. When one of the other men slung him over his shoulder Blondie started walking back the way they came. "Let's go." he said.

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