To all readers of Ranger's Apprentice: The Sorcerers of the Lands,
Thank you to all readers for the support and reviews.
The more reviews, the faster I write.
Sonín al distpúrr lóso!
May your arrows stay sharp!
The Review button is for questions, comments, and criticism.
Also remember, it's what gets me writing.
So, here's Chapter 4!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters (besides those I made up) nor do I own anything else besides the places (that I might make up) in the story. All of the credit goes to John Flanagan.
Ranger's Apprentice
Chapter 4
***
THIS YOUNG, YET FULLY-FLEDGED RANGER WAS RIDING THROUGH WHAT OCCURED TO HIM AS A THICK MIST. A MILE BACK, THERE HAD BEEN NOTHING BUT DIRT. NOW, THERE WAS an awfully thick fog that covered even his eyes. Will squinted his eyes, but there was nothing. Wait! What was that bright flash of light? It was red, blood red. A beam of light surrounded the thing.
Will brought his bow up. He flexed, placing a heavy arrow on the longbow. There it was— the thing. Will narrowed his eyes and focused as well as he could. He closed his eyes and produced an image of his surroundings. Will let go of the bowstring, his two fingers letting go in harmony; he knew it was a perfect shot. It made a short thump sound. "Who's there?" Will called out.
No response.
That was then when he had realized Tug wasn't alert. He was relaxed, with his eyes fixed at the somewhat visible road. It occurred to Will that the bright flashing light was not a person. He spurred Tug on, towards the light that shone once more.
Suddenly, it was in front of him. The mist had cleared, it was all gone. Most strange, Will thought. In front of him lay the most beautiful rock he had ever seen in his entire life. It was glowing. It was shining. It was carved and polished perfectly, and in a word, beautiful. He reached for it… and touched it.
In front of him lay the thickest fog he had ever seen. It was so thick; he could barely make out the shadow of a seven-foot warrior holding an extremely long blade. The fighter walked towards him, and the ground shook with every step. Will trembled in fear.
Hesitating, he looked for an escape route. There were none. Will quickly grabbed the stone and ran away from the warrior as fast as he could. He saw the trail from which he had come from. As he ran towards it, Will realized it was a trap. He twisted around, only to see the giant advancing on him swiftly. No options left to him, he decided to make a stand. Will raised the large longbow and placed an arrow. He shot continuously, one arrow after another. After shooting nine arrows, the youth grasped the fact his arrows weren't causing any harm.
It was over. The figure was approaching. Tears streamed out of his eyes. Horace, Alyss, Halt, Jenny, Baron Arald, Evanlyn, Crowley… all for nothing. His tears splashed on the ground.
A flash of light blinded Will's eyes. The stone in his hand drifted upward. The figure froze in place. A potent force drove Will backwards. The fog cleared, the figure was disappearing, and the path was clear. Some unheard of power seemed to shred the giant warrior into pieces just small enough for the naked eye to see. Will closed his eyes and held his breath and waited for the stone to destroy him as well. Nothing happened.
Will slowly opened his eyes. Standing in front of him lay the greatest discovery known to mankind.
***
Halt couldn't believe what he was seeing. Right before his eyes lay the youngest member of the Ranger corps, his former apprentice— Will.
He foamed. He raved. He swore. But nothing he did made a difference.
All of a sudden, Will's face flickered. It then transformed into an ugly being that contained a slanted nose, three eyes, and four feet.
It dashed at Halt at lightning speed, causing it to appear like a beam of light. Rangers, however, moved at lightning speed as well and had sharp eyes. Halt drew his bow and shot—, one, two, three.
The arrows pierced its skin, but seemed to cause little harm to it. The transforming life form rushed towards Halt and tackled him down.
It was a good thing Halt had fought without his bow many times, for it snapped into pieces from the force of the monster's wrath. He kicked the thing where he thought it would hurt most, but alas, it appeared the creature had not felt the attack. Halt then threw his knives, all three a centimeter apart from each other, landing square on the chest. The being staggered as the knives struck. It could still move, nevertheless, and Halt's saxe knife was on the ground, ten meters away.
The life form pressed forward.
As it happened, the figure vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind. There was no blood that it had dropped from before. What a miracle.
There are no miracles in life, Halt thought, picking up his shattered longbow. That weapon had been a partner to him as long as he could remember. Now it was gone. He sighed.
Faint treading could be heard a while away. Halt prepared himself once more.
***
Will saw it. Then he didn't. Were his eyes playing tricks on him? He touched it. Then his hand went through it. What was happening?
***
He hadn't encountered any problems during this journey, yet. Everything was fine. Crowley thought he was doing a perfect job. He was nearly there, full of supplies, and unscathed.
An old man had come up to him with a warning, but Crowley had tossed it into the wind. 'The Day of Judgment is near. I'm talking to you, young man.' Old people, he snorted. They knew things. This time, however, they were wrong.
Or were they?
Sonín al distpúrr lóso!
May your arrows stay sharp!
The Review button is for questions, comments, and criticism.
Also remember, it's what gets me writing.