Halt and Crowley had been trailing the Temujai for three days now. It had been one whole day since they had cut the water skins, and several hours since the Temujai had unexpectedly changed directions. Instead of going east towards Araluen, they had suddenly switched to going more northward, curving around in a big loop, but at a slower pace than before. So they've given up on Will and the others for now, Halt thought. They're coming after us. He couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. They were finally leaving Will and the other Rangers alone, who were no doubt exhausted and wounded. Halt felt a lot better knowing that Will and all the others were safe by now. He was sure they had made it to the castle, that was the only explanation as to why the Temujai would turn around. They weren't equipped to attack a large and well defended fortress like Castle Araluen, that much Halt knew from observing and watching their camps. They were travelling very lightly, and moving quickly. But now he and Crowley had to be very careful as they decided how to deal with these rogue, bloodthirsty tribesmen who wanted nothing short of their heads on a platter. Yes, Will is safe, for now. But now I have to figure out what we're going to do with these people before they catch us.

He and Crowley had been riding through the whole day at an accelerated pace in order to gain a bit of ground of the Temujai approaching from behind. They had managed to get ahead, and were now consumed with the task of leaving enough evidence of their presence that the Temujai would continue to follow them. They broke large branches every once and a while, made sure to trample large patches of grass, and stepped deep into patches of mud with their boots to leave clear prints. Halt even went so far as to leave a large piece of material from his cloak stuck in some sap on a pine tree. Crowley had scowled at him, and muttered, "If you leave clues like that, they might realize we're baiting them. That cloth is so obvious it's almost sickening."

But Halt had only shrugged silently and suddenly flashed back to when he and Will were tracking the Genovesians, before he had been shot and poisoned, and how they had left much the same clues to bait them. These Temujai are not very skilled trackers, considering how many marks they leave and how many of them there are. It would be a shame for them to lose our carefully laid trail. He had said as much to Crowley, who had only scowled deeper, and muttered something under his breath that Halt didn't catch.

They both now rode side by side down a narrow ridge along a hill top. They hadn't passed any towns in a few hours now, so Halt figured they must be nearing the river between Castles Araluen and Caraway. They had been riding all day in almost total silence, so Halt had had a long time to think. He thought about Will. He hadn't had much in the way of strange dreams since the one from the previous night, but the visions still flashed across his closed eyelids. I hope he's alright. I hope they made it. I hope... No one died.

But he knew that someone had to have died. That kind of attack... There was no chance they had gotten away without a loss. He hoped the survivors were alright, and that not too many people had died. He hoped... That Will hadn't died. Gilan, Harrison and his new apprentice, Leander, Frederick, Berrigan...

He hoped they had made it to the castle. He hoped that the King had taken care of them, and that they were all reporting to him, helping him shore up their defences just in case the Temujai did attack the castle. And most of all... I hope Will doesn't come. If he tries, he'll only get himself killed. If he's not dead already. He needs to help the King. He needs... To stay alive.

"Halt... It's getting dark."

Halt blinked hard, shaking himself out his thoughts as Crowley spoke. "Yes, I can see that," he muttered cryptically, still a bit muddled.

Crowley sighed. "Well, aren't we going to make camp? Or are we going to go attack the Temujai? What's the plan, Halt?"

Halt rubbed his eyes with his palms, stretching his skin and clicking his jaw. "Well, we can't make camp, at least, not here. If the Temujai continue to travel through the night, they'll be on us so quickly we won't have any chance." He glanced back down the roadway, as if expecting the tribesmen to pop up from behind some hill at any moment. "No, if we are going to do anything, we're going to double back around them and wait until they camp. And then we'll sneak in and hear what their plan is."

Crowley nodded. "That's all well and good, but how are we going to double back around them? Won't they see us?"

Halt just smiled. "No, no, they won't."

Crowley raised an eyebrow. "I'm assuming you have a plan."

Halt smiled. "That I do. Follow me."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later, Halt crouched on a thick branch high up in a tree. He had carefully rigged a kind of rope harness that he now wore under his cloak over his tunic, and he had tied the other end securely to the tree limb above him. His bow was also loosely tied to the very same limb with a short length of rope between the bow itself and the tree. This allowed for him to shoot with the bow, but he could also store it above him by balancing it on the limb, where it would be invisible and the rope would keep it from falling. He had tucked his quiver under his cloak where it was out of sight, and he now sat comfortably along the thick limb with his legs dangling freely. He looked down and saw the ground a long, long way down. He settled his eyes on the horizon line, off in the distance, just over the top of the hill. There was still no movement, no sign of anyone coming. He glanced across the tree line, and saw Crowley settling into a pine tree a hundred meters away. Halt nodded to himself, and then sat back again to watch. He and Crowley were going to sit up in the trees as the Temujai passed by underneath them, and listen in as they talked. Rather, Halt was going to listen in, since he was the only one of them who understood a bit of the Temujai language.

Halt kept his eyes trained on the small hill that blocked the view of the road from the forest. He knew that the Temujai would have to come over that hill in order to keep following the trail that he and Crowley had laid with a few good deep footprints and broken branches left along the trail headed towards the trees. Now it was only a matter of time before they came.

It hadn't even been an hour when the first scout appeared over the hill. Halt had to stifle a laugh as the Tem'uj got down off his horse and looked at something on the ground. He stood and brandished a broken branch over his head like a trophy, one that Halt distinctly remembered breaking earlier, and made a hand signal to someone behind him. Sure, these men are good fighters, but their trackers are idiots. Another guard joined him, and then they both signalled once more. And then all at once, at least twenty Temujai crested the hill.

They rode in an extended line, their leather saddles stiff and shining, their colorful armbands stark against the dull greenish-gray grass under their mounts' hooves. Their faces were hidden beneath helmets, masks, and cloths, and the unmistakeable point of a recurve bow bobbed up and down behind most of their heads. Another few carried huge lances that they had secured to each side of their horse with straps, and at every soldier's hip a traditional saber caught the light. They were quite an impressive sight, and Halt flashed back for a moment to his days living with these warriors. They were intimidating then, and they're still intimidating now even after all they've lost. There's a certain kind of respect owed when a broken nation can still hold their heads high and demand reverence from even the most powerful countries.

The rider in the middle was seated upon the tallest of all the horses, had the most ornate saddle and leather armor, and his rank on his armband was visible even from this distance:  blood red. So that's the Sha'shan's son. The rebellious child that wants vengeance for his father's defeat a decade ago. He looks the same age as Will.

The Shan raised his hand, and the company began to move again, forming up several rows, and moving in towards the forest. Halt glanced across to Crowley's tree, deliberately moving his head to look at him. Crowley stared back at him, and in the early evening light, Halt could just see his dark eyes glittering from under his cowl. He nodded once, and he saw Crowley's cowl bob down as he nodded back. Now, thought Halt, all we have to do is wait until they go by. He sat back against the tree, wriggling his buttocks into a more comfortable sitting position, and prepared to wait.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Damn it.

They're camping.

Here. Right under us.

Damn it.

Halt bit down more curses as he heard the Temujai speak. "This clearing looks good. We will set up here. The Rangers cannot be far ahead now."

The Temujai had advanced through the forest, reaching the point where Halt and Crowley laid in wait just as the sky turned completely dark. The Shan had just stopped the company right under the very trees Halt and Crowley sat in, and told them to set up camp. So much for dropping back behind them. So much for following them. So much for our entire plan. Halt clung to the tree branch and trunk, not daring to move a muscle. The Shan himself had pulled his horse to halt right under the tree Halt sat in. The creature's back hooves both rested on the base of the trunk, and Halt felt the horse's heavy hoof-falls vibrate through the whole tree.

I'm going to be stuck in this tree the whole damn night.

Halt waited what felt like ages, but what was really only an hour or two, as the Temujai set up small tents, built fires, and set up the Shan's bigger and grander tent next to a roaring campfire, and moved fallen logs and rocks around it to creator a meeting place. Soon, most of the higher ranking men sat in a circle around the fire, with the rest of the men standing in a loose circle around them. They began to talk about logistics, money, equipment, and the like, and Halt knew he had a chance to breathe. When he was certain none of them were looking around too much, he dared to shift his head just a few inches to his right, until he could just make out Crowley's dark form, barely even a dark blob next to the tree trunk in a tree nearby. He hadn't moved either, and he seemed to be doing alright. Since he was farther away, there weren't any tents or fires directly under him, and Halt breathed a sigh of relief. Crowley has a chance of getting out of here if anything goes wrong. That's good.

The Shan below began to speak, Halt listened in. "I don't need to hear any more of this. These numbers and lists, they mean nothing to me. What were the last reports from our scouts, At'lan? What of the Rangers we left behind?"

Left behind? He must mean the others! Will and Gilan and all the rest of them...

The man named At'lan, who seemed to be some sort of assistant, stepped forward and said, "The Ranger you met in the woods, he lead the rest of them all the way to the castle. My men attempted a few attacks, but they were split up into small enough groups that it was more difficult to find them than we anticipated. We only hit a few parties, and none of the men reported to have gained any fatalities. My border scouts sent word just hours ago that they made it to the castle."

The Shan's brow furrowed. From above, it was almost comical as Halt watched the skin on his forehead morph from smooth to bizzarly bumpy, sticking out from his face in little rolls. But his next words wiped the small smile off his face faster than the knowledge that they had run out of coffee.

"Then Will Treaty is truly as resourceful and capable as the stories say. I should have killed him in that forest."

Halt felt his heart drop from his throat to his feet, and he almost let go of the branch. Will. Will met him in the forest. Will got all the Rangers back to Araluen. He did it.

He did it.

And he's alive.

Halt could barely contain an irrationally large swell of relief, and he had to shut his eyes and take a deep breath. Now, if he stays where he is and doesn't decide come after me on some hair-brained rescue mission, then we'll all make it out of here in one piece. Mostly one piece. Maybe.

The Shan below had continued with a question. His forehead was still wrinkled up, folds of skin sticking out of his face. "And do we have any word on the two old ones? They were supposedly just in front of us a few hours ago."

"The scouts have not seen them for a few hours, but they are fairly certain they are still in front of us. If we travel light and fast tomorrow, we may be able to overtake them."

We've been riding at a slower pace just to make sure you stay on our tail. I don't think a group of your size could overtake us if you tried your hardest...

"We shouldn't have much problem with those two. I suspect they stayed behind to draw us away from the larger group of atabi. Once we take care of them, we can go track down the rest. Most of them are wounded, so they also shouldn't be too difficult to deal with."

Doesn't he realize that the longer they stay here, the higher the chance that they turn a corner and find the whole of Duncan's army standing with swords and bows ready? Not to mention Will and as many Rangers who undoubtedly want revenge?

"You men all know that we may not get out of this alive. But I want you to know one thing:  your deaths will be worth it. We will slay these atabi that destroyed our empire, and I will return to take over my father's throne a hero. Those who have already passed will be remembered with as much honor as the finest warriors in our tombs back on the Steppes." The other men let out a hearty cry, bellowing and cheering.

He just convinced them all to give their lives for him. And they listened. And they agreed. He may be consumed with vengeance, but he's a powerful leader.

The Shan held up his hands, and slowly they became quiet again. "Tomorrow, we will capture these two meddlesome atabi and get rid of them. Then we will go find Will Treaty and his band of survivors, and wipe out what little is left of them. I think..." The Shan paused in his speech. In the firelight, his eyes glowed demonic black, the flames reflecting blood red in his pupils. His whole body shifted and tensed as his demeanour transformed from emotionless to dark and vicious. "I think I will make him watch as I kill them all, slowly, one by one. Then I will kill everyone and everything he loves. And then, finally, I will let him kill himself. A merciful end, one far kinder than he or any atabi deserves."

Halt felt his blood run cold as he listened to the Shan's plan, and then a surge of unbridled anger swelled. He wants to hurt Will and everyone he loves. That means Alyss and Pauline and Horace and Cassandra and... I will not let that happen. I would die before I let any of them be hurt like that. Especially Will. He reached up for the branch above him in the tree, and felt around in the darkness for the knot that tied his bow to the limb. He carefully untied the rope and pulled the bow down towards him, clenching the grip in tight fingers, warming the wood to his touch. He drew an arrow from his quiver, reaching in under the fold in his cloak. He aimed the arrow at the Shan through the branches, his eye tracing down the black arrow tip, glittering in the firelight, to the Shan's own glowing black orbes of fire. How easy it would be to simply end him, right here and now. But Halt knew he couldn't do it. There were too many branches in the way, and clinging to the tree for so long meant that his hands cramped and trembled as he held the bowstring. His shot would be too tight and skew away, and would eventually hit a branch. Shooting an arrow now would only make noise, and that was the one thing Halt didn't need right now. Some sleep would be welcome, a peaceful moment maybe, and a snack sure wouldn't be amiss. But any sound right now seals my coffin.

"First, we must find..." The Shan kept talking, but Halt hadn't heard a lot of it as he had been fumbling around for his bow. In his hurry, he had shifted his feet on the branch below. As he slowly eased the arrow off the string, he reset his feet again, trying to sit back against the trunk more comfortably. But in the darkness, his depth perception was poor, and Halt's foot slipped off one side of the branch. One moment, he was settling himself back against the trunk, the next, his left foot was dangling in mid air and his cramping right leg couldn't take the sudden weight shift. He fell sideways off the branch without a sound, his right leg hitting the branch hard, one hand clutching his bow and the other scrabbling for something, anything to grab onto to stop his fall. He free fell for only a few feet before his harness kicked in, and his fall was suddenly and brutally halted as the rope ran out of slack. His breath was knocked out of him as the harness wrenched up, and he felt his rib cage nearly collapse. He must have blacked out for a moment, because when he came too, he was dangling in the air about three meters below the branch he had been sitting on. The harness bit into his torso, but his thick clothing had protected him from the worst of it. His hands had been burned raw and sliced open from grabbing at the bark, and he still struggled to breath. He blinked once, hard, as his vision slowly returned, and he reached out to grab the trunk to stop his gentle swinging. He felt his hands dig into the sappy bark, thankful that he had thought to use a harness... his bow. He had been holding his bow when he fell. And he had untied it just moments before. He whipped his head around, back and forth, looking for the weapon in the branches, his only source of light the dim orange firelight from below. He held back a sigh of relief as he spotted it, caught on a branch not far below him.

The Temujai had fallen silent as the sudden creaking of wood sounded from the tree above them. The branch had held as Halt's harness stopped his fall, but it had groaned loudly under his weight. Then had come a series of cracks and swishes as branches and leaves were shaken loose and showered down on the Shan as he fell.

"What was that?" the Shan murmured to At'lan. The officer shrugged, but stepped up to the trunk of the tree and peered up between the branches. Halt, who had been painstakingly reaching for his bow, froze as he saw At'lan peering up through the branches. He was still high enough up in the tree that he probably couldn't see him very well. But any movement would give him away. Halt held his breath.

At'lan stared up at him for a long moment. Then he turned away and said to the Shan, "I don't see anything. It was probably just an old branch or a fox." He drew his sword and poked it up through the branches. The metal blade had a much longer reach than Halt had anticipated, and though it was still too short to reach him, the shining tip brushed the branch that his bow was balanced on. Even just that tiny movement was enough to shake it loose, and Halt could do nothing but watch, cringing deep under his cowl, as his bow slipped off the branch and fell down, down, down, turning end over end as if he had tossed it like a knife, until it finally landed with a thud and a puff of black dust at At'lan's feet.

Damn it.

Halt could only watch as the Tem'uj slowly bent down and picked up his bow. The Shan had come over, and he was leaning over the smaller man's shoulder. "That's no branch."

"No," the Shan said, taking the bow from him. "That's a bow. A longbow. An atabi's bow." His eyes burned as he stared up into the tree. Halt knew he couldn't see him, but he could almost swear the Shan was looking right at him, right through him. Without breaking eye contact, the Shan said, "Surround this tree. The only thing I want falling out now of it is a dead Ranger."

Damn it.

Halt's heart thudded in his ears and in his bruised ribs as the men all got up, and made a tight circle around the base of the tree. I have to get out of here. But where can I go? He glanced around once, futily, since there was obviously nowhere he could go. He could jump to another tree. They would hear it, but he might still have a slightly larger chance of escape. No. The trees are too far apart. I would never make it. He shot another glance over to the tree he hoped Crowley was still in it. Don't come out, Crowley. Stay there. There was no movement, so Halt could only assume Crowley was either still hidden or gone.

The Temujai below were drawing their bows at the Shan's command. This is it. There's nowhere to go. At'lan still stood directly below him, blocking his ability to climb down. He had sheathed his sword and was talking to the other men, facing away from the tree. Halt was struck by a sudden idea, one that was absolutely senseless and insane.

But it was the only one he had.

He glanced down the trunk, and was satisfied to see that it was relatively clear of branches from where he hung all the way to the ground.

If I'm going, better to go out with a bang.

He reached around his hip, drawing his saxe. He brandished it above his head like a torch. One final salute.

This one's for you, Will.

He twisted his arm and slammed the knife into the tree above him, slicing the rope that kept him tied to the branches high above. He had barely managed to rip his knife out of the bark when he was suddenly airborne, falling, slipping down the trunk towards the ground. He barely felt the branches he skimmed on the way down, down, down, and in just seconds, he came crashing down... Right on top of At'lan.

At'lan screamed as Halt's legs suddenly slammed into his shoulders. Impact hurt. Every bone in his body jarred as he hit the Tem'uj, and his torso didn't provide much padding. His hand slapped a branch and burned like fire as the skin ripped open. His head smacked against a tree root, and everything went red. He felt At'lan's legs buckle, and suddenly Halt was flat on his back, sprawled on top of him. His already bruised ribs ached as he struggled to breathe. The world spun around him and he wondered if he was still falling. He lay there, in a daze of pain, and all he could see was blurry tree branches above him by the faint light of the fire. A head bobbed into his vision, it was the Shan. He could see his lips moving, and through the pain, he heard, "That's one. Find the other." Crowley. No. Then something slammed into the back of his head, and everything went black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wake up.

He opened his eyes.

He reached up with his hands and rubbed them, clearing his vision.

He was moving.

He was smothered in hair.

Horse hair.

Tug moved smoothly under him, his gait as steady and strong as it had been hours ago. Will barely even bounced as he lay sprawled in his saddle, his hands twisted up in Tug's mane, his head and torso leaning against his neck. He knew he had to get up. He pushed gently against his neck, raising himself back up in the saddle. He glanced around groggily. They were still riding, but the last time Will had checked, it had been late morning. Now they cantered along a ridge shrouded in trees in the late morning light.

"Did you wake me up?" he murmured, patting Tug's neck.

Yup. We're getting close. You slept nearly all morning.

Will yawned heavily. "I think I could sleep for a week and it wouldn't be enough."

Tug bucked his head up and down, inviting him to rest his head on his neck again. You can go back to sleep if you want. We still have another half hour.

But Will shook his head. "You're sure we're still on track? And you didn't see any Temujai?"

Of course. And if I had found any of those tribesmen, you would have woken up pretty quickly, because I'd be running away from them as fast as I could. Don't you recognize where we are? We rode near here on our way back to the castle.

"I'm so tired right now, I don't think I could recognize my house much less this place. But I'll take your word for it. Do you need a rest?"

Tug rolled his eyes and kicked up his pace a little. I'm fine. I can run as long as you need me to. It's only been a few hours. It's you that'll be fast asleep when a Tem'uj bursts out of the trees with swords ablaze.

Will rolled his eyes. "That's why you have wake me up before it comes to that. I need to get ready, in case they're all waiting for me up there with, as you say, 'swords ablaze'. And we still need to find Halt and Crowley."

Oh, I picked up his scent a while ago. We've been following it ever since.

Will nearly fell off Tug. "You what? You found their scent?"

Yes. Halt has a very... Distinct scent. I can always smell him from a long way off. I can also smell Abelard. And another horse and human I can only assume to be Crowley.

Will raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by distinct?"

I mean that he smells. Like someone who doesn't carry enough apples in their pockets.

Will cracked a small smile. "Fine. Stop up here, and I'll give you one. I have to get some water anyway."

Tug nodded his head. I can also smell other people and horses. I think those are the Temujai.

"What do they smell like?"

They smell like sand. And strange dirt. And their horses smell, well, like me. Like Ranger horses. But a little different.

"I guess they would smell like you, since some of them are probably related to you."

Will guided Tug over to a small spring just off the side of the ridge they were riding on. He pulled an apple out of his jacket pocket and gave it to Tug, who crunched it blissfully. He also gave him a good handful of oats, murmuring, "Thanks for letting me sleep. And for finding Halt." Tug had only nodded as he chewed on the oats, and Will went to the spring to fill his water bottle. He drank as much as he could, then ate a few pieces of dried meat along with some crackers, then he and Tug set off again.

Within another half hour, just like Tug said, they passed the hills near the Gathering grounds, and Will's stomach clenched and turned itself inside out as he imagined the carnage that probably still remained there, festering in the dirt. The tables, the benches, the food, the bodies, the blood... But Tug took him past it, saying that their scent was still beyond.

Another few hours passed, and by early afternoon, Tug snorted. We're really close now.

But Will was gazing at the ground. The hoof prints of Temujai horses, so many layered over one another, were fresh in the dirt. "They were here. They're up there. These prints are only a few hours old."

They're all up there. Go over that last hill and they should be right nearby.

"Alright." Will dismounted Tug and grabbed his bow and extra quiver. "I'm going to go see if I can find out what's happening. Go off into the trees."

I think I can find Abelard.

Will pursed his lips. "Fine, go find him. But then stay with him, stay hidden. And don't try anything dangerous."

I'll be ready for your signal when you get into some kind of trouble because I'm not with you.

Will rolled his eyes, but smiled. "And I'm glad for that. See you soon." Tug turned and trotted off into the trees. Will watched him go, then he set off towards the hills. He moved silently through the tall grass, and he bent over only a little to remain unseen. Moving quickly, he reached the last hill before the first in ten minutes, and he crouched down in the grass just a few feet shy of the top of the hill. He inched his way up and poked his head over the top. From his higher vantage point, he could see that several hundred meters inside the tree line, the outlines of tents and the glow of fires marred the usual forest of its uniform dark green tree branch pattern. So that's where they're camped.

Movement in the grass next to him. Soft, barely even a rustle of stalks and branches, but it was unmistakeable. Will turned in his crouch, his saxe knife leaping from its scabbard to his hand, expecting a Tem'uj to come hurtling out of the grass, knife in hand, a snarl baring his teeth and spreading his lips. His head turned to see...

"Will!" Crowley was there. He threw himself down on the ground next to Will, and grasped his hand firmly. "I didn't think you would come. It's so good to see you, well, alive."

Will almost laughed aloud in surprise. It was Crowley. Crowley was here. Will almost didn't know what to say. They had both been through so much in the last few days, and neither of them knew what was happening in relation to each other. But Will knew it wasn't the time for story telling, not yet. But his curiosity got the better of him. "The feeling is mutual. Where's Halt? What's happened? What's going on?"

Crowley's face darkened. His face was marred by worry lines and age, fatigue and stress carving cuts into his skin. Scattered bruises and cuts covered his hands and wrists. But his next words made Will forget his concern for him. "Halt's been captured. By the Temujai."

Will's eyes widened. He didn't say anything. What was there to say?

"And I have no idea how to get him back. He's hurt." Crowley's face was pleading now. "So I'm really hoping you've come bearing good news and that you've thought up one of your fabulous plans right about now, because otherwise, Halt's going to die."

Will could only make sense of one thought running through his mind.

I came too late.

************

Hey everyone. Hope you enjoyed this section. As usual, it's a bit late in coming, and as usual, I am sorry you had to wait this long. I went on a lovely vacation to Québec in Canada and it enjoyed it so much I barely had time to write. Jet lag these last few days have been a little rough, since I live in California in the Bay Area and it's a three hour difference. But anyway, I finally got it here for you. Hope all your summers are going well, hope you are enjoying vacation and summer homework. :) If you spotted any typos along the way, you know the drill:  just let me know. Go ahead and tell me  what you thought about this chapter in the comments section, and a vote would be very helpful as well.

This story is starting to come to an end. I still have a few more chapters planned for you, but I just wanna say it's been a great journey with you all. None of it could have been written without you. And just a fair warning: I've been cooking up a few good ideas in my brain for a few weeks now about how to close out this book and leave a few lose ends for my next book (which is in the planning stages!), and a couple of my ideas in particular are, shall we say, heart wrenching. (Don't hate me, it'll be good I promise.) But also hopeful. So yeah, just a warning/teaser. :)

Thank you so, so much for reading. See you soon. ;)