A Ranger's Apprentice for life. (A Ranger's Apprentice FanFic) Book 1

~Chapter 4~ There's a first for Everything...

Enjoy! Sorry about the wait.

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The next morning I woke up and did my chores quickly, only stopping to eat breakfast. "Hey Halt, when I finish my chores, can we start training?"

"Sure. But we have 'till noon, then we have to leave" For the next hour, Halt taught me how to throw knives with accuracy and sneak around so I wouldn't be heard. By noon, we were on the trail towards Castle Redmont. We didn't break for lunch until we reached the forest right outside Redmont. "Since this is your first mission, I would like you to not get involved. Your here to observe how we handle missions. Alright?" I swallowed before I replied.

"Of course Halt. I won't get involved unless I have to. I give you my word." I stood up to pack my things in my saddlebags. Halt stopped me.

"You are not going to get involved at all. You will not shoot one arrow from your bow. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir, as clear as ice. Now, can we move on? Please?" Halt nodded and I packed my things. It took us several hours to listen to our mission and travel there. When we arrived, we saw several farmers raising their heads to stare at us. Halt merely nodded in their direction and told me,

"See how they stare at us? They think that we use black magic, when we only use our training." Halt laughed a little and rode on, leaving me to catch up. I wondered if I should do anything on this mission not. Disobeying Halt was something that I didn't want to do, but I feel like I have to. I galloped forward, lost in my thoughts. When I caught up to Halt, I sighed.

"Halt, am I really not allowed to do anything? I was hoping that I would get the chance to use my training." Halt turned his head to look at me.

"If you want to use your training, go find Cobi. But other wise, you do as your told." I nodded and pulled up my cowl to block out the sudden rain. I hadn't noticed the storm coming over us, but Fury had. I realized that I haven't been listening to the things around me.

"Sorry about that boy. Your a good horse," I muttered, keeping my face hidden in the shadows of my cowl. Fury nickered in response. I laughed and patted his neck.

-Your a good Ranger,- he seemed to say.

"You bet that I'm a good Ranger!" I replied shifting in his saddle. I just realized how far away from Halt I was. I really needed to get on the ball today. "Come on boy, hurry up!" I urged him. We caught up to Halt and he scolded me for falling behind. After about five minutes, we saw our target. A farmer, wearing leather boots and a straw hat looked at his fields, his back to us. Halt motioned for me to dismount and leave Fury behind. We crouched down as Halt briefed me.

"Now that we are here," he whispered," we have to deal with him. It is said that he steals crops, animals, and anything else available to him. He has broken several laws and is a criminal. I will go in and capture him. You're the distraction. Tell the horses to go over there slowly, and to be on alert. I'll signal you when I'm ready." He stalked off towards his position and I snuck toward the horses.

"Abelard, Fury. We need you to go towards him, that farmer over there. Stay alert at all times. Wait for my signal." They nickered and grazed in the thick long grass. I looked over in Halt's direction and saw him watching the farmer. He suddenly turned towards me and gave me the action signal. I turned to the horses and signaled them, and watched as they walked towards the farmer.

"Look here. Two horses all tacked up with no owners in sight. Come to me my sweet stallions." Such a sick man I thought to myself. I noticed Halt had nearly reached the farmer,so I took action again. I called, and it sounded like an owl. The man's face had a confused look on it. Fury and Abelard heard the whistle and galloped in my direction. Just as they had gotten out of reach, Halt surprised the man. He shoved him on the ground and cuffed him. I signaled the horses to follow and walked over to Halt.

"You did good for your first mission Keira. Next time, you can help me." Halt shoved the man to his feet and started to walk towards Castle Redmont.

"Halt! Can't you ride Abelard?" I suggested while mounting Fury. Abelard was obviously not happy at the thought of being left behind.

"I could, but the he would get left behind." I pointed to a barn that was over my left shoulder. "He could ride too." I went to the barn and lead a horse out. It took me about two minutes to saddle the horse and get the farmer on him. "There we go. Now lets go." Halt tied the horses lead to his saddle horn and mounted. I galloped behind him and notched an arrow. "In case you decide to dismount sir, I think you won't like my surprise. " I saw his hands tremble. All he could do was nod and look at Halt. By the time the sun set, we had reached Castle Redmont. Baron Arald was there to greet us.

"Greetings Halt, Keira. I see you have our prisoner. Would you be so kind to give him to us?" Halt nodded, a tone of relief came out.

"Yes my lord." I untied the farmer and allowed him to fall to the ground. The guards picked him up and led him off behind the castle walls.

"Good job Halt. You too Keira. You may have the next couple of weeks free from duty. As I understand you have a gathering to attend to. Have a nice evening you two." With that, he walked back inside the walls. Halt and I didn't talk on the way back to the cabin. I kept thinking about what Halt said. I did well, I did a good job. My thoughts ended when I started to groom Fury before dinner. Dinner went fast and it was time to retire. Slipping into bed, I realized just how tired I really was. Listening to the birds, animals, and silence I drifted into sleep. In the distance I could hear Halt humming a song, which made me fall asleep even faster.

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Thanks for reading! Vote, Comment, and I'm suggesting it, Fan! :D Chapter 5 will be available soon.