The Amethyst Order - Ranger's Apprentice Fanfiction

Chapter 26

Crow Man sat on a cushioned chair in his large tent. He sighed, throwing his hood off his head. His appearance was yet again riddled with evidence of his relation with Humphrey.

Fingering the piece of amethyst in his pocket, he took it out. The Goddess hadn't visited him ever since Humphrey's revelation.

"Why do you hide from me, my love?" he murmured, yawning.

The Goddess didn't answer, and so Crow Man sighed. He missed her dearly. He missed her black hair, violet eyes, and her fair complexion. He even missed her dress.

"Please speak to me," Crow Man pleaded to the unusually dull crystal, his voice desperate.

"Help me love again," he whispered. "Help me learn the pain, yearning, emotion, and peace of a good life."

A shroud of mist flickered in front of Crow Man, his eyes lightening. The Goddess stood there, wearing her usual dress and robe, but her demeanor was different. The strong atmosphere that usually radiated around her dwindled. It was slowly decreasing, a weak feeling taking its place.

"Love?" Crow Man whispered, reaching out to touch her hand.

But he touched nothing, the mist disappearing as he touched it. Crow Man blinked.

The image of the weak goddess flashed in his eyes. It had to be a sign! Maybe he was being too gentle with the children. Or there needed to be more fresh blood spilt to supply the Goddess's needs.

Crow Man's eyes darken. That was exactly what she needed. More beatings and killings.

>>>------------->

"So, what's the plan, Gilan?" Milo asked as the friends returned to the small, eighteen people, cottage.

When Gilan didn't reply, Humphrey, Elaine, and Milo exchanged glances before looking back at their friend.

It seemed as he was lost in thought. But they all knew that it was not the case. Gilan had never fully healed from his mental breakdown, so now he goes into some kind of trance every so often.

"Gilan?" Milo touched his shoulder.

Gilan jumped. "Huh? The answer's Celtica!"

Milo blinked. "What?"

"Nevermind,"Gilan muttered. "What was your question?"

Milo frowned. "What's your plan?"

"Oh.." Gilan sheepishly trailed off. "I don't have one."

The friends were silent for a mere second.

"What?!" Elaine gasped, exploding. "Do you expect us to go into a fight with no plan?"

"No!" Gilan exclaimed. "That's a terrible idea."

Humphrey sighed. "Aren't you the ranger?" he asked. "Surely, you have some idea."

Gilan grinned. "Somewhat an idea. It's not complete yet."

"Well, what do you have then?"

Gilan tilted his head and thought for a second. "We should... split everyone up into groups. And... Each group will have a different task."

"You're making this up as you go!" Milo softly laughed, softly prodding Gilan on the shoulders.

Gilan chuckled, taking a seat, the others following his lead. He leaned back. "I guess that's true. But it isn't a bad idea, is it?"

Humphrey laughed. "No, it's not bad. It's a good start."

Elaine smiled as she watched the three boys laugh. She wistfully longed for another girl to talk to, and she supposed that there were plenty around her, but it didn't seem right. She unconsciously reached up to ruffle her hair. "Two groups?" she suggested, interrupting their laughter. "One for the fight, and the other to prepare the escape."

Gilan nodded. "Humphrey and I will take care of the fight. After all, we're somewhat skilled in it."

Elaine felt her heart drop. She frowned, not understanding what she was feeling. "Are you sure? Perhaps I can g-"

Humphrey grinned, as he placed an arm around Elaine's shoulders. "Are you jealous you don't get to punch on of them?" he joked, lightly laughing.

Elaine's face reddened, and she blushed. "Well yes, b-but I-I.... I don't," she stumbled over her words, flustered.

The three boys stared at her, making her face turn redder. "Nevermind," she muttered, hugging her knees.

Gilan looked between Elaine and Humphrey before continuing. "Milo, you and Elaine will run around the tents and look for any supplies we can use when we escape."

Milo nodded. "Reasonable," he agreed. "We'll also need a backup. If things go wrong, we'll need a place to meet up."

Elaine, almost back to her normal skin color, thought to herself for a moment. "We could always make a dash to the village, what was it called?"

"La Rivage," came the swift answer from Milo.

Elaine nodded. "We could always make a dash to La Rivage."

Gilan nodded. "It's not that far, and there's sure to be a lot of hiding places."

"So it's settled?" Elaine asked, confirming that this is indeed the final plan.

Gilan nodded. "Yes. This is it. We'll do it the next time Crow Man calls for a beating."

"I'd like to point out that Humphrey helped at all," Milo suddenly said.

Humphrey raised his hands up. "I'm not a planner. I just do it."

Gilan shook his head, laughing. "C'mon guys," he stood up and gestured to the other kids."We have to explain it all to them and split up."

A/N:

I'm sad. Writing this chapter helped me realize how close we are to the end. :(

It's almost over!!! With the new update schedule, we have like only 3-4 weeks before everything's over...

;-;

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