Page 32 of Captive
Before Boarstaff could answer, the crystals around the pool flashed a warning. Moments later, running footsteps echoed from the passage outside.
"Warchief." Koric appeared at the entrance. "Scout signals from the east border. Three new hunting parties spotted on the ridge trails."
Boarstaff rose from the pool in one smooth motion, water streaming from the ritual scars mapping his own history of border fights. "What kind of signals?"
"Old ones," Koric said, making both warriors tense up. "Not their usual search pattern. Something...from before."
"They switch tactics when their machines break down," Oakspearnoted, following Boarstaff out of the water. "Go back to older methods that might get through our defenses."
As they dressed quickly, Boarstaff watched Oakspear check his weapons with practiced movements. Whatever tension lay between them, the warrior's dedication to their people never wavered.One of many reasons he had been valuable in council.
"I’ll check the eastern watchtowers," Oakspear said, securing his spear. "Make sure the younger guards know what the old signals mean."
"I’ll meet with Thornmaker first," Boarstaff fastened his own weapons, mind already working through defensive changes. "Maybe the prisoner could explain their hunting methods if we questioned him properly."
Oakspear paused at the mention of Sebastian, but another guard arrived with more scout news before he could speak. The moment for personal talk was gone, replaced by the immediate needs of leadership.
The village hummed with controlled urgency when they emerged from the underground springs.Torches that usually lit the evening shadows were being put out to keep the village hidden in darkness.
Thornmaker met them at the warriors' platform high above the village, his face grim in the remaining torchlight. "They aren't just random vampires hunting for sport, but organized search teams."
"They are looking harder for their missing heir," Boarstaff said, studying the map where Thornmaker had marked the scouts' positions. "How close to the village?"
"Close enough that our outer markers caught them. Far enough that the forest magic still messes with their mechanical parts." The spearmaster pointed to several spots where disabled mechanical scouts had been found. "But they are adapting fast. If they find him here..." He did not need to finish. They all knew what Zarek and his father would do to retrieve the heir to House de la Sang, burn every forest between here and their citadel, slaughter every orc they found.
At the eastern watchtower, they found Murkub drilling young guards on vampire hunting signals. From up high, Boarstaff could see the whole village below, wooden buildings built to blend with nature rather than stand apart from it. His eyes drifted to the Heart Tree at the village center, its massive form housing both council chambers andthe room where Sebastian lay bound.
"The prisoner might be our best source of knowledge about these hunting patterns," Boarstaff said. "If the bindings have done their work, he might share what he knows."
"If the bindings have not broken him completely," Thornmaker replied.
Dawn was breaking by the time they finished checking the village defenses. As Boarstaff finished his rounds, he found himself near the sealed chamber, drawn there despite more urgent duties above.
"Warchief," Murkub nodded in greeting. "The bindings are holding him. He is stirring more often now."
"Has Ochrehand checked on him?" Boarstaff kept his tone professional.
"Twice since you performed the ritual. She says the transformation speeds up when you are near. The magic responds to your presence differently."
That sent a shiver through Boarstaff that he carefully hid. The ancient texts had warned about the rituals; how dangerous they were.
"The council meets at dawn," he said, stepping away from the door deliberately. "Make sure the prisoner stays secure."
The council chambers stood open to the dawn light, several members already gathered with expressions ranging from caution to outright hostility when he approached.
"The hunting parties are staying at the forest's edge for now," he reported. "Their machines keep failing when they push too deep, so they are switching to older methods."
"Methods our prisoner might understand," Moonsinger observed, her aged eyes missing nothing of Boarstaff's tension. "If the bindings have made him willing to talk."
"If they have not destroyed whatever value he might have had," another council member countered. "Even our ancestors feared what those ancient bindings could do to a captive mind."
Boarstaff took his place at the council table, feeling the absence of Oakspear who had gone back to the northern settlements.
"The prisoner might provide tactical advantages we have never had before," Boarstaff began. "Beyond just understanding their hunting patterns, he holds knowledge of the citadel's inner workingsthat could significantly shift the balance of power in this territory."
"You would risk our warriors on intelligence from a vampire noble?" The elder who spoke had lost family to vampire raids. "One whose loyalty clearly lies with his own kind?"
When the arguments started circling, Boarstaff shifted tactics. "Ten years ago, I led a raid into House Silvervessel's territory. We found their improvement chambers, children having their humanity stripped away, piece by piece. We got close enough to see it happening, but House Silvervessel was too strong for us to save any of them."
