Halt stared into the little camp fire, his eyes glassy.

After he and Crowley had left the fight, they had run for hours through the trees toward the coast. Four hours later, they had finally stopped running and found a discreet and shielded area to camp for the night. Now, behind a large wall of rock and surrounded by a dense grove of oak trees, he and Crowley had lit a small fire that they deemed necessary for warmth, but they kept it as small as possible to keep the visibility down. There was no moon tonight, so sky was black enough that the smoke wasn't visible. They sat silently staring into the flames, their faces lit up an eerie orange in the dim light. Neither had spoken any more than was absolutely necessary, and neither wanted to break the awkward, anxious stillness that had settled. But Halt dragged his eyes up out of the fire and cleared his throat softly. "Crowley... I'm sorry I didn't explain anything before we... Left."

Crowley glanced up. "I suppose I've grown to trust your instincts. But I am a little lost as to why we left everyone else back there to fight off the Temujai while we went running off into the forest," he shouted, suddenly angry, and clenched his fists at his side.

Halt winced slightly at the anger of his friend, and spoke hurriedly to explain before things got out of hand. "I know it seems bad Crowley, and it is. I wish we could have done something else - "

"We could have, but we didn't! Why did you have to drag me out of there? One glance at Will, one nod, and we take off running with no explanation while a full blown ambush takes place behind us! The hell were you thinking?" His eyes were glittering with fury, the kind of anger that comes after a stressful situation. It was common in soldiers who had nearly lost their life. Halt had seen it many times before after terrible battles, and no matter how weathered a veteran, Crowley was not an exception.

Halt tried to explain again. "I was thinking - "

"Do you know how many could have been hurt, Halt? How many could have died?" Crowley leaned in, seething. His face was red and his knuckles were white. Halt leaned back. His anger has escalated from an immediate battle reaction to uncontrollable emotional tidal wave. He had only seen his friend this angry a few times in all the years he had known him, and even then, this was one of the angriest. "With the amount of Temujai that attacked, there's no way they got out of there without casualties. In fact, for all we know, they could all be dead!" His spit was flying through the air. "Will could be dead! Gilan could be dead! Anyone of them could be lying in a puddle of their own blood, while we just ran!" He abruptly stood, walking away and then coming back, pacing furiously, his fists clenching and unclenching. After a few moments of silent fuming, he stopped and turned, calmer. "In all my years, I don't think I've ever seen you run from a fight. And I know for certain that you wouldn't just abandon the Corps, or Will, for that matter, in a mess like that without a damned good reason." He took a deep breath, and then sat back down in front of Halt, rubbing his hands near the fire to keep warm. The anger still burned in his eyes, but he was calmer now.

Halt let a few moments of silence go by, in an effort to give Crowley a moment to get himself together. He finally spoke softly, placatingly, "If you would calm down for a moment, you would remember that I never do anything without a 'damned good reason'." Crowley glanced up, some of the anger fading. "And I'll tell you all about my 'damned good reason' if you would just give me chance."

Crowley sighed, then nodded.

Halt took a deep breath, and began. "I suppose I'll start from the beginning. You will recall that I spent a short period of time living in a large village on the Eastern Steppes just a few months after becoming a Ranger."

"Yes, of course I remember, I was the one who authorized that mission." Crowley nodded.

Halt continued. "During my time spent, I made certain to create a small but extremely trustworthy circle of friends from various villages and of different ranks. This was to try initiate an intelligence source so that even after I left, I still received letters from them occasionally, filling me in on the things the Temujai were doing with their economy and, most importantly, their military. These days, I have one especially close friend that sends me a summary letter about once or twice a year at most, just listing the things they were doing or planning to do. Most of the time these letters contain nothing of interest, and I file them away for possible use later. I've been doing this for at least a decade now."

"So that's all well and good, but if you've been receiving letters from the Temujai all this time, why didn't you know they were attacking Skandia a few years ago?" Crowley asked.

Halt shrugged. "True, I would have normally expected to receive some sort of news regarding that. Unfortunately the letter they sent that year was sent months before any of that happened, and their plans were only listed as being in the beginning stages. I simply ignored it. After all, it wasn't uncommon for them to try to plan some raid or attack, and never even come close to carrying it out. But after I returned to Araluen, I checked my file, and sure enough, there was a notice for warning that they were thinking of attacking a nearby country. But no one within my contact pool had any idea it could have been developed and executed well enough to threaten Skandia, and, by extension, Araluen."

Crowley was nodding. "I see. So basically, you received a letter a few months ago, and it warned you about... all this."

Halt nodded solemnly. "Yes. Just about four months ago, I received my annual letter. But this time it was urgently written, describing the erratic nature of the Sha'shan's son."

"I'm familiar with the fact that the Sha'shan is the leader of the Temujai, but what does that mean, exactly, in terms of what he controls?"

"Think of him like general, but he commands the whole country as well as just the army. His son recently came of age and joined the country's military. He is supposedly very bitter and angry about what happened to his father a few years ago when Will and I helped the Skandians stop them. Ever since, this boy has hated Rangers with 'a bitter and flaming passion', as was quoted in the letter, for ruining his father's career and the future of the tribe as whole."

Crowley sighed sadly. "Sounds like a very troubled and angry young man."

Halt sighed, too. "That he is. The letter described a scene that one of them observed. His son barged in on a meeting, demanding to speak with his father. He told him that they were planning to go and attack Araluen to find the Corps, and kill us. His father, being a somewhat sensible man, completely rejected him, and so his son screamed at him, ignored his orders, and escaped the fort. He hasn't been seen since, but his father knows that he went to go and get his small but substantial group of fanatics who follow him. According to letter, they should have had plenty of time by now to get themselves over to Araluen."

Crowley leaned back and shook his head. "So you're telling me that this crazy kid decided he needed to get revenge for his father by coming to Araluen and killing all the Rangers?"

Halt nodded, his lips pursed.

Crowley huffed. "Not a terribly smart kid, is he? Attacking us in our own country?"

Halt gave a faint smile. "True, but he did know to attack us all while we together in one place, which was not actually a bad idea. Which means he's angry, reckless, but has plan. That makes for a very dangerous boy."

Crowley nodded.

"Now, the reason why I dragged us both away from the fight was so that we wouldn't be seen by any of the Temujai. A Ranger, or someone very close to the Corps, had to have tipped them off on our Gathering location. Only a few select people, besides us fifty, know that exact location and how to get there, much less how to avoid all fifty Rangers as they arrive and plan an ambush on us all that no one manages to see coming. We escaped so that we can find out who tipped them off, and so that when we track them through the countryside, they won't have seen us at the fight and instantly recognize us. Not that they'll be seeing much of us as we follow them, but we needed to take the precaution."

"Do you think a Ranger tipped them off?"

Halt swallowed slightly as he saw a faint light of fear, and hint of mistrust in his old friend's eyes. He cleared his throat before speaking. "No, I don't. And that's because I know every one of these Rangers and their mentors. And I know that none of them would betray the Corps like that. And besides, if someone was sharing information about us, one of us would have noticed and said something. We're all too damn good not to notice and do something about it."

Crowley was nodding. "Which also brings up the fact that we haven't had a dirty Ranger in the Corps since Morgarath's time. I think we can trust them."

Halt nodded. "That's a fact." He trailed off as the whoo whoo whoo of an owl cut through the crickets, bringing him back to the reality of the dark, cold trees surrounding him and the small, crackling fire that brought a small measure of comfort to their bleak state.

Crowley leaned back and sat in silence for a long time, thinking deeply about what Halt had said. After a while, he asked softly, "Why did you leave Will behind?"

Halt raised both eyebrows, startled by the question. "What? What about Will?"

"Why would you leave him behind? Wouldn't you want to take him with you?"

"Normally I would..."

"Oh, come on, Halt, out with it. You and I both know that I am not a strong, spry man anymore. I'm slowing down, and I know it." At this outburst, Halt raised an eyebrow at him. But Crowley just rolled his eyes and kept going. "And we also both know that Will is one of the best shots in the Corps, probably second only to yours. And you always take him on missions with you, always."

"Crowley - "

"Now, don't think I'm putting myself down here. I can still move as silently as I want, silent enough to scare my own Rangers, and write up and report to the King better than you and Will combined. And I pride myself in these abilities." He ignored Halt's snort at this statement. "But I'm just curious as to why you left him there, and I know there has to be a specific reason. So out with it."

Halt swallowed, silent for a moment, all humor and sarcasm gone. Then he started softly, "I was trying to prepare him."

"For what?"

"For when I'm gone for good."

Crowley stared at him for a moment, and then laughed. "Halt... You do realize Will is a grown man. An accomplished Ranger. He had his own fief for a few years, he's done multiple missions with and without you, and he's got himself a wife and house. You wouldn't believe how many requests I get from various Barons asking for him to be reassigned to their fief. His personal résumé matches yours, and he's barely in his thirties. So I think I speak for everyone when I say, he can handle himself."

Halt sighed. "Don't you think I know all that? ... I suppose it's bit complicated."

"Then uncomplicate it for me." Crowley leaned back, ready to listen.

"There's... Not really much to tell. I suppose..." Halt struggled to start. What do I say? That I left him behind so that he can figure out how to deal without me? "I suppose... Well, in the past, whenever the Rangers acted as a unit, you or I were always there to take the lead and command the group as a whole."

"Yes, but that hasn't happened since Morgarath."

"But it could happen again at any time. After telling Will that I'm going to retire, I thought that he should get a chance to command the Corps as a whole. I also knew that whoever took up that job would have to get some fifty Rangers plus who knows how many dead and wounded across several fiefs to Castle Araluen, all while hiding from and holding off pursuing Temujai."

Crowley raised his eyebrows at this blatant list of all the problems Will was currently facing, and Halt nodded in agreement. It sounds impossible when I say it like that. "Now, I'm not certain how many Rangers could handle a tough job like that, but I know for certain Will can. So I left him there, in charge, to get news to the King and the wounded to safety, while we go and figure who is responsible for this mess and what we can do to stop it." Halt sat back, exhausted from talking so much.

Crowley nodded after a few moments. "That makes sense, I suppose."

Halt didn't answer, and instead said softly, "Was that a damn good enough reason?"

Crowley gazed at him critically across the flames. The irrational panic and anger was gone, now only a sadness remained. "I don't know if any reason is damn good enough to abandon them all like that... But I suppose it'll have to do for now. Like I said before, it makes sense..."

Halt raised his eyebrows as Crowley trailed off for a moment. "But?"

"But that doesn't mean I have to be alright with it."

Halt didn't have anything to say to that, so he kept quiet. That's true... I'm not alright with it either. Wonder how Will's doing... His thoughts went to his former apprentice, somewhere off in the forest, planning with whomever had escaped. I hope he's alright. I hope they're all alright. What did I get them all into... No. Halt shook his head to rid himself of the doubt that was beginning to seep into his mind. I made the choice, and I carried it out. It's done, and there's nothing I can do to change it now. So stop worrying about it, and focus on what you have to do.

Halt blinked a few times to clear his head as Crowley stood stiffly, then wrapped his cloak around him tightly, and walked over a spot a few paces from the fire. "You alright with taking first watch?" Halt nodded, and Crowley stretched out on the ground, his back to him. And Halt found himself deep in the same thoughts as he gazed into the orange flames.

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

Halt opened his eyes.

The sky was starting to dim over the trees, which were smothered in white. White? Oh, it was snow. It was caked along the branches, piled next to trunks, and smoothed in huge drifts along the ridge. He picked his way over a frozen river, bubbles frozen into the slick black ice under Abelard's hooves. It was snowing heavily, but there was no wind, so it fell peacefully and thickly, like the usual overcast clouds had decided to come down and visit. A mute silence settled over everything, only the occasional gentle creaking of the trees broke it. He fingered Abelard's reins between his gloved thumbs, then dropped them, directing with his knees. He breathed in the cold crisp air and felt the light breeze on his face. Abelard's hoof beats made muted thump thump thump sound on the snow covered ground, and Halt closed his eyes again as he allowed himself to settle down in the chilly silence.

A child's laughter rang through the trees.

It was brief, and faint, but definitely there. Halt squinted through the white haze, blinking as thick, fat snowflakes clung to his lashes. Halt felt his hand go to the hilt of his saxe as Abelard turned a corner on the little path and came upon a rather strange sight. A small figure was kneeling in the snow just about fifty meters away. As Halt rounded the bend, the little child turned its head to see who was coming. It was a young boy, not much more than a baby, maybe two or three. He had light skin and thick brown curls of hair on his head, and his eyes were large and dark. They sparkled with innocence and joy of being young, and one of his tiny, fisty hands was squeezing a handful of fresh powder between his fingers. His little mouth was open in an 'O' of surprise, and he knelt, frozen, in the snow.

Halt had stopped moving, and he moved to get off Abelard when he heard the little boy say something.

"Ranger."

The boy's tiny lips formed the word, and it escaped in a visible breath through the air. It was soft, but just loud enough for Halt to catch it. He nodded, smiling at the little one. The boy stood up on his stubby little legs, a few inches shorter than Halt's hip.

Halt walked slowly over to the young boy, who watched him warily. Halt came within a few feet, and knelt down to the boy's height. "Hello there, young sir. What are you doing out here all alone?"

The boy still didn't smile, but his lips twitched. "Just playing."

Halt raised an eyebrow, but smiled gently. "Just playing? All by yourself?"

"With my friend." Then the boy's face broke into a wide smile, his dark, brooding eyes lit up, and his little teeth flashed white. It hit Halt all at once, but the smile confirmed it. Those eyes, that smile, even the laugh, though it was young, he could recognize it anywhere by now.

"Will?..." Halt trailed off as the little boy suddenly turned, looking off into the trees to his left, and another little voice called from a little ways away.

"Hey, where'd you go?" This voice was more high pitched, and was followed by an unmistakable giggle. This had to be a young girl.

"Coming,'Lyss!"

The boy turned back to Halt, and by now, he was certain that this had to be Will. His smile was so achingly familiar from all the years he had spent with him, from the moment he had first seen him as a baby till just the other day when Will had smiled at him. "Will? Is that you?"

But the boy's smile just grew wider, his eyes sparkling in the way that only Will's could. "I'll see you again, right?" His voice was so cheerful and light, so... Will.

Halt felt his throat starting to close up, and he cleared it, croaking out, "Wait, Will..."

But the boy turned and ran off in the direction of the girl, laughing and calling out to her. He soon disappeared into the trees, and suddenly everything was eerily silent again. Halt stood alone in the forest, staring at the footprints left in the snow by the tiny little boots of the boy.

Without any warning, all the snow around him melted before his very eyes, changing from white fluff to clear liquid that just as soon sunk into the now green grass, and fresh saplings and greenery rose from the soil in seconds. Trees collapsed silently and fell to the ground, instantly blooming with moss, the wood rotting and collapsing until old logs covered in years of moss remained. Years of change in the forest compressed down to mere silent moments before Halt's very eyes.

Halt blinked a few times as the sun moved backwards in the sky, settling itself in the early afternoon so that new, yellow light came down through the new green leaves.

"So how big is it supposed to be?"

The voice startled Halt, and he whirled around to see Will. Now he was older, around fifteen. His Ranger uniform was just a little too big around his small frame, but he would soon grow into it, Halt knew. That same sparkle and smile remained. Halt stuttered, "Uh... Weren't you just here? How old are you?"

But Will just smiled. "Of course I was just here. I never left. And since when do you not know how old I am?" Halt could only blink at this. Will just laughed. "Now, how big is it?"

Halt shook his head a little. "How big is.. What?"

Will rolled his eyes as if Halt should have known. "The boar. How big is it?"

Halt glanced left and right, scanning the dappled brush for any signs of movement. "A boar?"

Will laughed again, still rolling his eyes. "Yes, Halt, a boar." He flipped the flap in his cloak over the reveal a quiver.

Halt squinted at Will. "...What day is it?"

Will now squinted at him, raising an eyebrow. "What's the matter with you? Now come on, I guess I'll have to find out just how big this one is myself." He turned away, his recurve bow unslung and a few arrows ready. Halt followed uncertainly. They walked for just a few moments when Will suddenly whispered, "I think it's close. We'd better split up." Without waiting for a reply, he turned sharply and disappeared behind a bush.

"Wait, Will - " Halt hissed as he dashed after him, shoving the branches aside. But there was no sign of his apprentice, just leaves, forest, and light. Halt squinted as he tried to sense any movement, but all was still.

All at once, a flurry of thundering hooves and a startled cry from Will echoed through the trees. Halt jumped, shouting, "Will! Where are you?" He sprinted in a mad dash through the trees. He came upon a clearing, and saw Will kneeling on the ground, his saxe held out in front of him like a spear, with a massive boar charging at him headlong. Halt couldn't stop to think, he slung his bow off, notched an arrow, drew, aimed, and shot in a breath. The arrow flickered through the air and plunged into the boar's side with a meaty smack. The great beast groaned and fell, dead before impact. Then he ran to Will, ripping the saxe out his small, shaking hands, and pulling the boy's trembling body to his own in a hug. He felt Will's breaths heave as he cried, and Halt held him tighter.

Just as Will seemed to calm down, he disappeared, and Halt was left with his arms wrapped around nothing. He felt his heartbeat in his eardrums, and he tried to go for his weapons, but they were gone too.

All at once the dead boar in front of him melted away, and he was left standing on the shore, staring after the boat as it peeled away from the dock, heading out to sea. "Halt!" A breath of cry reached his pounding ears, but the Skandians had already pulled away, and he could do nothing but watch as he was taken away.

Now Will was at the bridge with Evanlyn, shooting at the Skandians as they came closer and closer. Evanlyn was sawing at the ropes, having thrown her flint and steel aside. The beams were on fire, the tar igniting quickly, and the Skandians ducked into cover as Will managed to stick one of them in the arm. But one of the larger ones stood, hefting a rock, and threw it at Will. Just as the rock was about to hit him, it all melted away again.

Now Halt squinted as the Arridi desert rose up around him, the sun beating him down onto the rust colored soil. He took a few steps forward and stopped. There lay Will, flat on his back, his eyes squeezed shut, unmoving. His skin was blistered and burned, and his horse was dead beside him. Vultures were swooping down, picking at the fresh carcass. "Will!" Halt tried to shout, the word was crushed, obliterated by the heat. He started running toward him, and it all froze. The world turned black.

"Halt, you have to... Save me." Halt whirled around and saw Will lying on his cloak, his arm bandaged heavily. He was sweaty and pale, trembling with weakness. His eyes were bloodshot as he repeated, "Save me."

Halt nodded, turning again to find Malcolm. He was bending over a pack, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Halt, but there are two types of poisons, and I need to know which one."

"I can.. Go get Bacari..."

But Malcolm just shook his head. "Halt... Bacari's dead. I'm afraid there's nothing that can be done to save Will."

"No... No there has to be something. Something..." Halt staggered toward where Will was lying, but another figure was bending over his prone body.

"I'll never be dead," Bacari hissed, smiling, and raised his knife to stab Will.

"No!" Halt shouted, and he threw himself under the knife. The blade glimmered beautifully as it plunged downward, and Halt closed his eyes, bracing for the end.

"Halt! Wake up!"

"No... Will.."

"Halt! You're dreaming, wake up!"

Halt opened his eyes. His vision blurred for a minute, and he was finally able to focus on the face of Crowley bending over him, his eyebrows furrowed with worry. "Finally, you woke up. The hell were you dreaming about?"

Halt rose to his elbows, blinking. "I... It was nothing."

"Sure wasn't nothing. You were rolling around on the ground, muttering and talking. What about Will?"

Halt ran his hand through his hair, sitting up fully. "It was nothing. Just dreaming, is all," he said more confidently.

Crowley raised an eyebrow. "What about Will?" he repeated.

Halt sighed. I can't tell him all the details. He'll think I'm crazy. "I'm just... Worried about him, I suppose."

Crowley was nodding. "Me too. I'm worried about all of them."

Worried enough to dream up something like that? I don't think so. Halt tried to change the subject. "What time is it?"

"Breakfast. I was thinking we should head out pretty soon, if that's alright with you. We need to get the horses and find these Temujai before it gets dark if Will's going to have any chance. Unless... You want to sleep some more?"

Halt pushed himself to his feet. "No, I'm fine. Let's get going."

They kicked dust over their fire and set out.

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

Merry Christmas everyone!

Thanks so much for reading this newest section. I would love some feedback on what you thought about Halt's dream/hallucination sequence, how I wrote it, how you interpreted it, anything you've got for me. It's a new style of writing I'm trying out, and I would to hear from you on how I did.

Also, please tell me what you think might happen next. If it's a good idea, I might incorporate it into my plot. ;)

Please leave your comments and vote if you liked it! Next installment should be posted very soon, as in, less than a week.

Happy Holidays! ;)