I think all I can say is I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry. Thank you if you came back after I took months in updating (I warned this one would be tough as I tried introducing more characters) and I promise I will try to keep my updating more constant now.
xxi.
Will rushed to the woman, kneeling by her side and taking her bloodied hand when she searched his. The arrow on her back should have killed her yet the main wound was the cut to her side that was bleeding nonstop. It became rather hard to think properly with the woman sobbing right in his ear though he knew the first thing he had to do was get her attention and clean it up before he could try to follow the aggressor. It was in times like this where he wondered what he really was supposed to do as a Ranger; was he supposed to take care of the wounded or was he supposed to leave them to track down the bad guys and prevent them from hurting anyone else.
Knowing he couldn't really leave the woman there and that by then the attacker would be well underway, he slid his hand from the woman's despite her crying and walked out to call Tug over. The signal told the horse to approach with care though not too slow as it was somewhat of an emergency. Going back to where she lay sprawled on the floor among clothes and a few cushions as well as broken table and curtain poles, he positioned her a little better to remove the arrow and set it aside before carefully picking her up and laying her on a more comfortable position over some tablecloth on the floor. With a cotton shirt from the mess he pressed on her wound to try to stop the blood flow.
"In the barn. The barn." she mumbled through gritted teeth. "They're in the barn."
"Okay. That's fine. I will check the barn when I bind-"
"It's in the barn. The demon. In the barn."
"I know. Now just let me get..."
The woman kept interrupting him as she gripped his hand tightly and although she seemed to be having trouble breathing and swallowing her eyes were wide open, anxiously trying to find reassurance in his. If he had ever been scared of a stare, the blue eyes that locked on him totally made the list and no matter how much he told her he would look in the barn after getting her safe she would insist on him going.
When Tug arrived outside and Will left to collect the small healing kit he carried she was still mumbling to herself and kept it up all through his work on her. He knew the nearest village was almost an hour away and that was the only place he could find a healer unless he found one traveling in the road which was close to impossible. At the same time, he wasn't sure she would last the trip and if he brought the healer it'd be two hours lost by which time there would be close to no light for him to search the grounds. Thus, he tended to her wounds as best as he could and wished he had someone with him that he could send to the village while he looked around.
Dismissing the thought and telling himself to focus on the matter at hand, he finally got her to fall asleep and left Ebony to take care of her while he went to see what she had been telling him about. He wondered if the woman would last the night and decided his best option was to look for her husband or father or daughters to get them to watch over her. As it was, the farm looked completely deserted and he began wondering why no one else had come to their aid if they had heard the screams.
If Maiah had been amazed upon reaching Redmont, when she saw Castle Araluen appear in the horizon she couldn't help gasping at its grandeur and immediately felt the power the place pulsed. She had been to Zatec, Mazoniria's capital city, and had stood by several times while the army had taken over several other centers of civilization; but never had she felt so insignificant when it came to standing in the place where the heart of the country lay. It wasn't just the sight but the feel of the ground as they walked up to the doors and the wind on her face which seemed to warn her against doing something reckless. Even the people carried themselves with an air of higher self-importance and the guards felt more intimidating. When Halt came to stand at the door the stream of questions seemed to go on forever even though she was sure they knew who he was. It wasn't until Crowley appeared and assured the guards he would keep an eye on them did they allowed the newcomers to enter the castle.
"I apologize, Halt." Crowley said as he led them up the stairs to see the King. "Those knuckleheads of guards won't let Rangers through but when that juggler came in last night they didn't ask him his name. I had to increase security after we heard of a few revolts to the north of the fief though by the looks of it I have only made matters worse."
"Haven't told the King yet, have you?" Halt asked in a lower voice once they were inside Crowley's office.
"No. I kept it at feisty farmers. Though I hope you have good news and know how to break it to Duncan because if this is a matter of homeland security we could be charged with treason for keeping it to ourselves for so long."
"Well, I believe it is a matter of homeland security." Halt said calmly and pushed on when Crowley opened his mouth to complain. "However, I will introduce it as regional threat that went out of control."
"You can't be serious." Crowley said under his breath letting himself down on his chair and passing a hand through his face. "Halt, I know you are good friends with Duncan and all but—"
"it will be just fine."
"So you did find something." Crowley said after some time looking over at Maiah who had been standing quietly behind Halt.
"Enough to know they're coming though we are still working on the 'from where.'"
"We might as well find Duncan then." The commandant said heading out to find the king.
Thankfully, Halt proposed talking to Duncan and Crowley alone which let Maiah remain in Crowley's sitting room while the Rangers talked business; she wasn't sure she was ready to meet the King of Araluen just yet as she still felt out of place in the country, especially Castle Araluen. Thus, she promised to remain where she was and watched the two exit and head left to where she guessed the king was. Eventually, he would ask to meet her and she would have to go up and explain what was asked of her; but for now she was glad they weren't forcing her to break the news herself considering Commandant Crowley seemed somewhat shaky when he learned the news-breaking would be harsher than intended. She just hoped he was simply doing it to get Halt down from his cloud but doubted there was much play in their conversation when it had to do with these matters.
Halt walked with Crowley through several corridors finally arriving to the large white doors of the library. Crowley knocked softly before walking in, Halt behind him, and waited for Duncan to appear from behind the book-filled shelved. Duncan came with his usual easiness still frowning down at a large volume and didn't address them until a few minutes later when he became aware of the fact that he had company. Breaking into a grin, he greeted both Rangers and seemed rather glad upon seeing Halt in Araluen.
"Well, I must say I wasn't expecting you coming here any time soon, Halt." Duncan said motioning for them to sit. "I hope all is well?"
"Well, about that, sir…" Crowley said trying to meet Halt's eye to see what would be said though soon realizing the Ranger sitting to his left had no intentions to begin his report just yet. "Would you think it is better to discuss this somewhere…"
"I think the library is just fine, Crowley. Thank you." The King said easily and settled down on one of the chairs ready to talk simple business. "Now, what is that you have been trying to tell me?"
"Well, Your Majesty—" Crowley started before Halt interrupted him.
"We may have a few weeks to set up the battle for the freedom of Araluen." He said offhandedly earning a glare from Crowley that told him he could have been a little more subtle when breaking it to him. Duncan still didn't seem to think it was serious though he doubted there had ever been a time when Halt wasn't serious.
"So what are you saying again?" he said sitting up a little straighter still not sure he had heard right.
"An invasion." Halt said glad his plan had worked. Break it hard first then minimize it by showing it is a little more under control and the details would usually help though this time they just made it worse but he wasn't about to say that. "There is an empire to the south across the ocean and they are preparing to invade Araluen when—"
"Dad, I've been looking for you for hours."
The three of them turned their heads and stood when Princess Cassandra entered the room with a somewhat annoyed expression. Behind her, a tall, broad-shouldered boy entered with slightly more care; despite his height and built, once one looked at his face one could tell he wasn't as old as he looked at a first glance and rather noble.
"Oh, hey, Halt!" Horace said as a wide smile spread across his face and he walked over to greet his friend.
"Horace." Halt said and although he did not jump up and down with happiness or broke into a run to greet the boy, there was a change in tone. In a more respectful tone, he added, "Princess."
"What a nice surprise, Halt!" The girl said smiling widely seemingly forgetting she had been in there in the first place to speak to her father. "What brings you here? Where's Will?"
"Precisely." The king said recovering from gaping at the interruption as it took away his moment. He would appreciate the Rangers finishing what they had come to say before someone else broke into his library and interrupted Halt once again. "What exactly is this business, Halt?"
"Perhaps we should bring—"
"I will tell His Majesty what I have found and then he can see how he puts it to the rest." Halt said firmly. Uninvited, Cassandra took a seat though the men remained standing and simply motioned for Horace to shut the door before moving to the table where Halt lay out a roll of papers and looked through them before finding the one he needed. Showing them the map of Araluen and its surroundings, he pointed with his finger as he continued, "There's an empire across the western sea that up until now remained unknown to us. I am not exactly sure how they escaped our notice however they have been able to expand across their continent and now have planned on expanding their rule overseas."
He was about to proceed and tell them the rest of the information, and events, that they had gathered in the last weeks but before he could continue three voices rose in protest trying to get him to answer a large amount of questions that hadn't even been finished before the next one was up. Halt waited patiently and shared a look with Crowley who, like a Ranger, knew everything eventually willed out and had decided the fastest way to get what he needed was to let Halt continue without interruption.
"What is this we are talking about? Where did this come from?"
Halt sighed loudly; they didn't have time to spare but guessed it would be more productive to spend more time explaining the situation than to waste it stopping every time they had to do something. He got them to settle a little more comfortable, though it was clear it was all a façade especially in Horace and Duncan as both looked in the edge of taking out their swords and running out to fight whoever came in their path, and slowly started telling the events beginning with how they had met Maiah on their way to the Gathering, the chase and unsuccessful interrogation of Prowessa, the digging up of information and finally Will's and Gilan's assignments. When he was finished they waited in silence trying to assimilate what was going on, Duncan opening and closing his mouth more than once as he tried formulating questions. Finally, he was able to get his bearings though still sounded hesitant.
"So she's here. We…Bring her over and send someone to get the Battlemaster. I'll be seeing him upstairs."
The King went out and since there had been no clerks with him Horace strode off to contact the Battlemaster while Crowley and Halt walked back to the Commander's office to retrieve the girl leaving Cassandra to herself and making her realize once again as much as she tried participating in the goings of the castle, there were times, like right then, in which they wouldn't allow her to actively participate. To begin with, now that it was all becoming more formal business, she wasn't exactly sure her father would allow her to attend this meeting with the Battlemaster and even if she did sneak in she wouldn't really be considered as an important member of council but rather a listener. She had a small hope, however, that regardless of what Halt had hinted at about this new girl, she was able to share some of the lack of attention from the males once they were both in the room.
Maiah stood up when she heard steps outside and met the two Rangers as they came into the room. Halt gave her a brief summary of the meeting with the King and in just a few minutes the three cloaked figures were on their way to meet again with the others. The room they entered wasn't exactly grand and vaulty like Alia's council room had been but, if anything, a little too small to hold the long table in the middle. To the left, around a smaller, tall-legged table, stood four figures none of them resembling Maiah's idea of a ruler.
To begin with, the girl—whom Maiah unconsciously believed was the ruler until she reminded herself she wasn't in Mazoniria anymore—although she held herself with a certain authority it seemed she was still trying her position; furthermore, now that the setting clicked in her head, Maiah discarded her as the Queen though didn't underestimate her power. Along with the girl were three other men all of them dressed in mostly the same clothes though one seemed to be somewhat better. The blond hair of the owner of such clothes, however, just didn't look as cocky and self-important as any of the other rulers she had met; he had confidence, she knew by the way he carried himself, but somehow his confidence didn't come from being able to boss others around but rather from being sure others would follow him as their leader. Simultaneously, it was evident he was fully aware of the responsibilities his position entitled and thus behaved correspondingly.
"Maiah, I suppose?" He said as he moved towards them. The Seer felt her hands become clammy and could feel the temperature rising in her ears in that uncomfortable way that told her she was probably bright red. "Well, I guess after hearing the whole set of adventures you three have been having—along with Will and Gilan—without anyone else in this kingdom knowing I shouldn't really ask how it is going. Still, I feel like in such matters I would need more insight into this whole thing. I will not deny I am still pondering on what to do about the fact that Halt acted without any authorization and more so, that Crowley knew about this and didn't say a word—" He held up his hand to stop the words coming from the pair. "—But as I can do nothing about it at the time I would like you to tell me more about this. I mean…I don't know what I mean…just start."
Maiah was still somewhat puzzled on the way he had directed himself towards her. Even if she understood his lightness on the matter of Halt was in part to make her feel more comfortable, she couldn't really tell if anger or simply concern was the cause of his scattering of ideas. It was obvious he, as the king, didn't usually behave in such a way, and yet here he was correcting himself. Knowing that despite his state, however, he had made an order she slowly began retelling what—by the nodding of his head and lack of interruptions—she guessed Halt and Crowley had already said. Similarly, the younger man in the room seemed to be listening to her story for the second time using it as a way to fill in more details and add them to those they had gotten from the first telling of the events. On the other hand, the older man, whom she guessed had Rodney's position, gaped often and had to be silenced by the Rangers to allow her to continue without interruptions. It was only natural when she finally finished her story by describing the small paleontological adventure they had done and the findings of the maps for his questions to flow out of his mouth like rivers down the mountains.
With a patience she knew came from his deepest insides, Halt slowly explained the man the whole idea of what being "attacked by foreigners" meant and when he finally was done turned to Duncan. The King seemed to have used this time to think through though still couldn't find the right words to express the random bubbling inside that wouldn't leave him alone.
"Gentlemen," He finally said knowing he could rely on those present to advice him. "Do we have enough evidence of this to call the War Council?"
There was a long silence as the three elder men carefully considered what their responses should be. If the threat was real—as it could be thought of up until now—then they had no time to lose and should have already sent the messengers. On the other hand, if for any reason it turned to be a false alarm or something smaller than what it appeared, all their efforts and stress would have been for nothing; not to mention the widespread panic that would have embraced the country as word leaked out as it was bound to be. Halt knew he still needed Gilan's and Will's report and that would probably define the situation in its entirety. Yet, if it all proved true they would have lost time waiting for the two Rangers; time that could come to define the destiny of Araluen.
When Duncan looked again into the eyes of his friends he saw in each of them the fire that told him he hadn't been mistaken when choosing them. There was a curt nod from each one of them as they stood a little taller.
"Lord Anthony, would you make sure we have messengers ready to leave as soon as possible to every fief." Duncan said turning to the chamberlain as he stood at attention by the door. "We are calling the War Council on a matter of large importance; an emergency. We have an invasion from overseas."