ix.
By the time Halt and Will had made their way back Prowessa had been locked up, this time under high security as stipulated by Halt, and most of the shock had dissipated. There were still messengers and clerks running around with parchment flying behind them but for the most part it had settled down to a matter of regular investigation. Although they had expected Gilan to take Maiah to her chambers and let her rest or call a healer they were surprised to find him outside her door waiting anxiously while Pauline tried to soothe him a little.
"Halt." the Ranger said full of hope at the sight of his former mentor.
"What happened?"
"Prowessa was very sneaky." Pauline explained with her calm voice helping the mood around her. "Even when they had her tied and bent to put her back in her cell she had managed to set a trap. She managed to get hold of some short knife with poison-don't ask me how-and escaped from the first guards. She ran straight into the castle and I guess she thought I was some noble as she chose to fight me of all people."
"The last victim before she went down." Will mumbled almost too low for anyone else to hear. "Makes some sense."
"In any case, Maiah and Gilan entered just then ready to put her back down. Maiah was poisoned as she captured Prowessa again."
Will didn't speak as he thought of what had happened and tried picturing the scene. There was not an important link missing though he knew Pauline was leaving things out. He didn't push anymore as he could see behind her calm mask, the courier was shaking in shock after having the wild woman trying to kill her and the girl saving her. Pauline never said it, but Will knew she was thinking how Maiah had saved her life and that had warmed her towards the girl.
Looking at each other, the four figures stood outside the chambers waiting for the minute they could know what was going on. Halt realized how strange it was that they were here worried sick over the foreign newcomer instead of their friend and ruler who had also been wounded back at the forest. Nonetheless, as soon as the small healer man came out the Rangers and the Courier rushed and stumbled over their words asking how the girl was.
"She needs rest." he said softly to no one in particular. "I do not know what they used on her, foreign ivy I would expect. Some symptoms are similar to known poisons and I tried as best as I could to use what antidotes I know but I can't risk much."
He went on in his way leaving the others standing by the half open doorway. Slowly, Pauline walked in followed by Will and Gilan but Halt remained outside watching the trail the healer had left. Gears churned inside his head as he thought of what the healer had said, the events in the forest, and his next move. There had to be a way out of all of this and as he got closer to the answer he realized it only would get him farther away from his goal. It was a double never ending loop; the closer he got to solving his question the more he pushed the answer away from him. Still, it was the only way out of all this and he was sure there was a small chance things would turn out for the best. With a determined stride, he made his way down the steps towards the dungeons where the prisoners would be waiting.
Maiah opened her eyes slowly as the sun shone on her face. She moved her eyes around trying to figure where she was. To her right, a large window allowed a soft breeze and sunlight that sipped into her skin giving it some warmth after the cold night. As she grew used to her surroundings she tried sitting up only to find her waist wrapped in bandages under her garments. With a soft moan at the unexpected pressure, she pushed herself to a vertical position and after blinking a few times threw her feet over the bed and made to stand.
"Get back to where you were, Miss." Maiah tried hard not to jump to the ceiling when the old voice came from behind her. She turned to find a round woman making her way to her bed picking up her skirts in a quite comical look.
Maiah gave her a hard look nonetheless. "What happened to my clothes?"
"Now, you will rest and stop this nonsense." the woman replied, pushing her down on the bed and rearranging the covers and pillows around her. "It was just last night that you were dying and now you want to go around chasing rabbits like boys do. None of that nonsense. If it was for me, I would get you to work by the kitchens or even as my assistant; not in the dirty forest like a lad. Especially at your age."
Maiah took a deep breath as she prepared herself to reply to this woman who talked nonstop but she deflated when the door opened a crack and a soft knock cut off the nurse midsentence.
"Come in." the woman replied and drew from the bedside though kept a close eye as two figures, one taller than the other, walked into the room and headed towards the bed.
"Well, what do you know, leave her a few minutes and she'll start a conversation." Gilan said with a bright smile.
"Don't think that's much of a challenge." she replied in a whisper looking in the nurse's direction to make sure she hadn't been overheard.
"Don't wonder why Halt is not present."
"Are you feeling better?" Will asked trying to find any hint of discomfort on the pale girl in front of him.
"Not sure how I felt before but I guess I am."
"I think you know by now she's better than last night." Gilan put in as he paced the room. Despite his bright smile and light tone, Maiah could tell there was something bothering him by the way he kept his hand on the hilt at his waist; there was also the fact that Will looked around more often and his eyes longed for the window.
"What is it?" She finally asked unable to hide her curiosity.
Both Rangers gave a quick glance in the direction of the woman still in the room and after some deciding they finally asked her to leave. The woman was not too pleased in leaving her patient although she could feel the creepy feeling at being in a room with two Rangers; but there was no way she would refuse either one of them and without argument she headed out the door. Gilan waited until he heard her fade away before speaking.
"The duel was this morning." He finally said, avoiding her eyes. He saw out of the corner of his eye the shift in her position as she sat up and almost stood to have a better standing. "Halt had to be the one to challege her since he is perhaps the most experienced individual in all of Araluen. But we hadn't really thought of what he would do if she asked for some sort of close combat."
"I would think you had foreseen that." She said somewhat reprimanding yet utterly concerned
"We really expected her to try long range; bow and arrow, you know." Will said coming back from the window. "Halt had a hard time keeping her sword away but eventually got the hang of it."
"So he's alright." She said aware of Gilan's silence. In fact, she addressed her statement towards him.
"He's fine. Won't let the healers look at him so he's as grim as ever." Will said trying to brighten the dark mood that had crawled into the room despite the sunshine.
"There was only one way to stop her." Gilan finally said, turning from the window. "He tried really hard to make it work but—"
"I am not blaming him." she assured him though was somewhat stunned at the news. She wasn't going to mourn Prowessa, but she had thought of her mentor as invincible, immortal. "I should have thought about that before getting mixed up in all of this. It was stupid to think she would just give in like that."
"We had to try somehow." Gilan said trying to comfort her. "That was perhaps the only way we could find out what we needed.
"But now she's gone and all the information with her." Maiah felt her frustration rising as she realized how wrong she had been and how hard her mistakes were hitting this nation she had supposedly come to save.
There was a soft knock at the door, making all three jump in surprise. Gilan was the first one to recover and answered the call without allowing the messenger into the room. When he turned back and closed the door his face looked a little grimmer and filled with worry.
"What happened?" Will asked almost running to the door and holding back his need to shake Gilan by the shoulders to gain information faster.
"The Baron is calling for us. The three of us. I assume he has something for us now that our plan failed. I just hope we have a second plan."
Will and Gilan walked out into the anteroom while Maiah got ready. Both Rangers remained silent and avoided each other for the most part as they paced a side of the room. Will knew Maiah was probably efficient and it wouldn't take long for her to come out, yet those minutes he waited seemed to stretch on forever. His heart hammered in his chest so hard he wondered if Gilan could hear it across the room. He was anxious to know why it all seemed so urgent and even though he didn't know what it was all about some sixth sense told him it wasn't good news or the Baron would have come to tell them himself. No, it was something more and he had a feeling it had to do with Prowessa's last words.
"It will be fine." Gilan broke into his thoughts making him stop his pacing. Will looked at his bleeding thumb to avoid the older Ranger's gaze; lately, when he got anxious he would gnaw at it with his nail until he broke the skin.
"I just don't' have a good feeling about this." He answered slumping down on the arm chair.
"I haven't had good feelings about anything that has been happening lately either; but I'm sure we will be able to sort everything out soon." Gilan said aware of the fact that the last days had been exhausting/ he had to keep reminding himself that despite all the great deeds the Ranger before him had done, he was still young; in fact, he still was the youngest Ranger in Araluen at the moment. "Besides, perhaps it is time for another one of your adventures."
Will looked up offering a weak smile, glad to have Gilan there to cheer him on. With a sigh he added, "I guess some action will keep me from getting old."
"Well, maybe not necessarily from getting old, you see Halt here. But at least it will keep your senses sharp."
Maiah entered the room then, walking upright and without any hints of having been sick just a few hours before. Needless to speak, the three of them exited her chambers and headed towards Arald's study. The halls of the castle were emptier than usual though it didn't surprise them given the fact that an alert had been called as soon as Prowessa had escaped. When they arrived they found Halt already there, sitting by the desk somewhat concerned. He was surprised to see Maiah up and about though didn't allow any of his relief to show, especially no just before receiving the news Arald needed to deliver. He wasn't too fond of the idea himself and had considered keeping the three young individuals out of it but much like Arald and Rodney had said, it was a matter of teamwork no.
"Glad to see you are much better." The Baron addressed Maiah once they had settled in. "I never got to thank you for what you have done so far."
"I think I owe you more than what I have done, My Lord." She replied bowing her head. She knew Rangers usually didn't bother with such formalities but she was still struggling to get used to the colloquial nature of these people.
"Nonsense." Arald waived her away with a low chuckle. The merry mood didn't last long, however, and the Baron lost no time in going straight into business. "We were unable to gather anything from Prowessa except for the fact that she had planned on sending a spy with Alyss's party. Nothing to worry about there, Will, I know; we found they left before they were meant to so now more than half her men are behind. And she assured us in her report all those with her are trustworthy."
Will wasn't completely sure about that but didn't interrupt knowing there was more to it than that.
"Given the situation, we now have no choice but to warn King Duncan so that we can start being active." Arald paused and looked at Halt. The Baron waited until the Ranger nodded before proceeding. "I will be sending Halt with Maiah to Araluen Castle to get Duncan up to date. However, we can't simply forget about all the planning so we agreed Gilan will be heading east and Will west to the coasts. The Mazonirians should be getting here by sea and any sign of their movements should be notified."
"Are there any other Rangers being mobilized?" Gilan asked after thinking about the assignment.
"This has not gone to the king yet," Halt said. "Until Duncan is notified the Ranger Corps as a whole can't be mobilized. Only after we tell the king what is going on are we allowed to act under his command.
"But then we have been acting against…" Will added still frowning as he tried to make sense of everything that was going on.
"We've agreed to classify it under local activity." Halt said. They had to leave it to the sneaky Ranger to get past regulations. "one of the reasons why I will be the one dealing with Duncan."
The five figures remained in silence as each thought of what lay ahead. Up until then, the real issue of the invasion hadn't been present; it had just been chasing Prowessa much like if she was just another criminal. Now they were really facing a war strategy; none of them doubted Rodney was already mobilizing troops and looking at the field to prepare in case of a battle.
"I will appreciate having a few movements with Maiah." Aral said finally. The Rangers quietly stood and left the room with a last glance in the direction of the blond girl sitting up straight in front of the Baron's desk. When they were gone, Arald remained looking at her for a few seconds before saying, "I would like to apologize for doubting you. I know this is not easy for you and am really grateful that are doing this for us."
"I…I don't want Araluen or any others to suffer what my country did." She replied with the same fire in her eyes as when she had stood up to her mentor.
"And I thank you for that." He said nodding for emphasis. "But what I wanted to tell you now is that as a way to thank you for your service I offer you to become a protectorate of Castle Redmont. Now, before you start arguing, I am offering this to you—and I hope you don't turn me down—because once you get out there you are going to find some villages are not fond of foreigners regardless of where they come from and what their intentions are. It is not that I doubt you but rather the fact that I want you to be as safe as any other Ranger or soldier that travels."
"I would be honored." She was trying hard to contain her excitement though Arald caught a glimpse and smiled. "But I don't want to cause more trouble than—"
"Nonsense. I won't send a whole escort with you if that's what you though I was thinking. This whole idea is just a way to make sure you have a safe trip since the royal government is not yet aware of what you have done and could attempt to cause more trouble than we need."
"I guess if that's the case I will be glad to accept it, then." She answered feeling happier than she was letting on. She could finally feel herself belong somewhere; she had, if not a country, at least a place where she was welcomed.
"And, I know you were not in good relations with Prowessa but…well, we buried her out in the forest in case you needed to visit her or that other girl Gilan had to shoot down. Believe me, I'm not trying to make this hard or bring back—"
"I understand."
"And, well, we will probably be keeping the weapons both were carrying but if you would like to I am sure Sir Rodney won't mind showing them to you one last time."
"I think I am fine with not seeing those again." She replied with a small smile. "However, I must ask, did you remove a small vial from each of their garments?"
"A vial? Well, I…I believe we searched them thoroughly and took any objects that could have been thought of as weapons."
"Did you say Sir Rodney had them?" she maintained that calm tone though she had stood up and inched towards the door.
"At the academy, yes."
"Thank you, My Lord. I will be taking one last look at that before parting." She gave a quick bow and dashed for the door as if fire had been set at her rear. Arald looked stunned after her unable to call her back or make any move to stop her. He just wished Halt was nearby to learn what had set the girl in such a state.