The Duties of a Ranger, BlackNightshade [best books to read for self development TXT] 📗

Working out in his father's fields, Aiden watches in awe as the King's Rangers come home from thier duties. Aiden has always wondered what a Ranger does, What are the duties of a Ranger, and how does one become one.

Hadon, the leader of the Rangers, rode on his horse up towards Aiden who stopped his work. Aiden, at first didn't realize that the Ranger was coming towards him, so quickly he dropped the rack, fixed his hair, and brushed the hay off of his clothes jsut in time before the Ranger stopped in front of him.

"I am Hadon, what's your name my boy?" He asks not showing much emotion in both his voice and eyes. Surprised that an actual Ranger would come and greet him, Aiden nearly forgot to speak.

Bowing slightly, Aiden introduces himself and Hadon smiles a tiny bit. They talked for some time and while that the other Rangers went home. In there conversation, they were stopped by a booming voice.

"Aiden! Get back to work! Winter is coming and we don't have enough grains!" Aiden's father, Peyton yells out as a reminder to his son. Aiden yelled back, turned to the Ranger and apologizes.

"No need, I understand farm duties." He said. 'Farm duties? How would he know?' Aiden thought picking up his rake.

Sensing his doubt, Hadon told him in a whisper that eh was once a farmer and a man named Stryder, now on his death bed, transformed him into the Ranger he is now.

Awestrucked, Aiden and Hadon said their good-byes, departed, and Aiden went back to work while Hadon went back to the kingdom.

"Who was that?" Horace, Aiden's brother asks looking at the direction his brother's eyes were at. Turning his ehad around, Aiden became startled for a bit and punched his older brother. Even though he is younger, he is faster and becoming stronger. Horace is getting quite lazy so the more lazy he's becoming, the weaker he's getting.

"A Ranger. The leader, Hadon." Aiden simply explains before getting himself back to work but continues to think about Hadon, the Leader of the Rangers.

'Finally done racking.' Aiden says to himself wiping away the sweat and goes to take a shower before he smelled even more bad than he is now. Going inside the stable, his horse, Charlie, hears his master and starts making noises. Smiling, Aiden reaches into the bucket and gives Charlie some food off of his hand. Munching on the food, Charlie then lifts his head up and looks at Aiden's eyes. Even though he is a horse, he could see that Aiden's eyes were transfixed, he nudged on his master's head and got himself a pat on the neck and head.

Heading towards inside the house, Aiden brushes his shoes so the dirt wouldn't get on the floor much and heads inside, smelling, sweating, dirty, and... just plain ol' smelly.

"You best take a shower boy otherwise your mother will be complaining." Tristen, Aiden's other older brother who is married explains as Aiden nods his head and goes to take a shower before thier mother comes home.

Still wet from head to toe, Aiden emerges from the shower with only a towel around his waist, he then goes into his room to get dressed in cleaner, nicer clothes but his hair is still a little wet so he stuck his head out the only window in his room and lets the sun dry his hair.

"Aiden, Tristin, Nathaniel I'm home!" Chryssa, thier mother, calls out as she walks arm in arm with her husband, Peyton. Even though she's older than everyone including thier father, she still striked as the most beautiful woman in thier eyes.

"Welcome home mother." Tristin greets kissing her palm like he does with all ladies. It is required for all men to kiss a lady.

"How was work?" Nathaniel asks taking hold of Chryssa's bags while smiling brightly. Her eyes sparkled and she replies to his question and said that work was about to become dull but got better.

"Are you staying for a long time mother?" Aiden asks looking both in fear and anxiously. In mere silence, Chryssa lowers her head and shakes it.

"No, the Queen has invited me to stay with her. I agreed. I am so foolish, I'm sorry boys. I know how much you want me to be home but... We need the money. I'm sorry boys." Chryssa explains crying. Aiden goes over to his mother and wipes her tears away.

He hates seeing his mother like this. Just too painful for him. Sure he's seen his old horse die, friends die form plauges, brothers get severally ill, and father going on rants which to the village was the most painful, but to him, a mother's cry is the worse of all. If it's another lady, he would feel bad but when it's his mother, it's worse.

"Don't feel bad. Your doing what's best for us." Aiden says placing a comfort hand on her shoulder. Eyes filled with tears, she hugs her boys and then kisses her husband.

At sundown, the family sat around the table to eat dinner. They heard a knock on the door. Getting up from the table, Peyton goes over to open the door.

"May I help you sirs?" He asks blocking the view so his family wouldn't see who's at the door.

"Yes, I am here to see Aiden." A man replies as Aiden gets up and walks over to his father. "Yes sir?" He asks looking at the two men. One he didn't recongize, the other, he did, Hadon.

"Hadon, what are you doing here?" Aiden asks looking at him. Looking both seriously and anxiously, the man next to him hands Aiden a letter then goes to his horse and rides away. Looking towards the horizen, until the man disappeared from sight. Then looking back at Hadon, he gestures for him to open the letter.

While opening the letter, Aiden's family then crowds around him, the wind's blowing, and the birds were chirpping.

As soon as he unfolds the letter, he reads it out loud. "Dear Aiden, I have been sending my men to watch you. No, not spying on you, just watching. They told me that you have skills but your not fit enough to be a knight, I'm sorry. Most boys would die if they couldn't become knights. Well anyways, my men told me that you are fast, silent, cunning, am excellent climber, all the stuff you're required if you want to become a Ranger-"

Ranger, as soon as Aiden read that, he stopped. He had the requirments to become a Ranger. He looked back down and read on. "If you want to become one of my Rangers, say "Yes, I would like to join the King's Rangers. Or, "No, I would like to decline the offer." Thank you and I hope to see your reply. Your's truly, King Renold.

'The King? The King sent the letter to me?' Aiden thought not looking up from the letter. Everyone, except for Hadon, looked at him as if the letter was a death threat but they heard it and it wasn't. Everyone was silent, waiting for Aiden to speak up. Finally in the mere silence, it was Hadon, who spoke up, breaking the silence.

"So would you like to join? Or do you want to decline?" Hadon asks crossing his arms. Everyone looked at him curiously and anxiously. What seemed like forever, Aiden finally answers with a bright smile.

"Yes, I would love to join The King's Rangers." Aiden replies as Nathaniel tells him what he was waiting for and Aiden rushes into his room to pack. He's finally going to learn the secrets and is going to become a Ranger.

Finishing the last of his packing, Aiden takes one last look at his room before he transfers to a new one. On his way downstairs, Aiden sees his father talking to Hadon.

He didn’t know exactly what they were talking about, but he could see his father laughing as if he had heard a brand new joke or something.

“You ready laddy?” Peyton asks as soon as he sees his son come to the bottom of the stairs. Nodding his head, Aiden places his belongings near the door entrance and runs to give a farewell to each of his family and then friends.

Heading towards the stables with Hadon at his heels, Aiden unleashes Charlie, his horse. Seeming confused about why Aiden named it Charlie, Hadon asks why and Aiden answers, “It’s named after my little brother, he died from a plague. He was only six years old.”

After he said that, Hadon frowns, he knows what it’s like to loss a younger at such a young of age. He too named his horse after his brother, Balto.

Guiding his horse to Balto, a war-horse and Hadon’s. “Now don’t be mistaken that Balto is a male. It’s actually female and one of the finest war-horse ever. But I use her when I travel; she’s too precious to be in a war.”

Aiden had to agree, he would use any horse except for Charlie, he is still young and only good for traveling, and putting him in a war would tire him and possibly, maybe injure him severely.

“You ready to go?” Hadon asks grabbing the reins on Balto as soon as he got on. Nodding his head and smiling, Aiden got on as well and grabbed the reins. Before they left, Peyton runs over to his son and gives him a horn. “Whenever you’re in dire danger, blow on this.” Peyton whispers stepping back so the two can gallop onwards and towards the kingdom.

On there way, Hadon tells