Along the Great Divide

Chapter 12--The Hunt


It got cooler. There was the sensation of the wind whipping through his hair and the sounds of yelling that was steadily getting closer. Mamoru opened his eyes and saw the sight of torches just in front of him with a forest in front of him. Ludwig's raven hair flew about wildly as he ran, smacking him in the face some.

"Ludwig? Ludwig, what's happening?" Mamoru asked, sitting up. Ludwig had put him on his shoulder while carrying both of their packs.

"They came early! That damned bitch told them where we were hiding and they came two whole hours early. You were still unconscious so I had to carry you."He said as he ran, jumping over a bush and continuing to run again.

"Put me down! I can run too!"Mamoru said as he started to squirm.

"No chance, they're too close right now. I want to lose them first but it's hard!"He said before he jumped over another bush. The sound of baying dogs echoed behind them and men yelling.

Mamoru looked around, looking to Ludwig's pack that he carried on his back. Grabbing it, Mamoru started to fly upwards, lifting Ludwig off of his feet and into the air. The men started yelling and a loud bang resounded from down below. A small thing whizzed by them, nearly hitting Ludwig in the leg if he hadn't swung him out of the way. Ludwig held onto Mamoru for dear life until they found a high place that they could stop up in a tree. Setting Ludwig down, he landed and crossed his arms.

"We'll be safe here for a moment. Give me my pack, we'll fly the rest of the way."Mamoru said stubbornly. Ludwig caved, giving him his pack. Mamoru shouldered it, turning around. "Get on."

"Are you sure I'm not too heavy?"Ludwig asked, adjusting himself on the pack on Mamoru's back while holding onto him.

"You are but I'm not going to let you fall. Not ever. We're getting out of hereeAAAHH!"Mamoru screamed as he felt something pierce his shoulder. The mage started to fall, Ludwig falling with him. Rolling in the air, he used his body to block the tree branches as they fell, hitting the ground pretty hard. When he opened his eyes, the men had gotten much closer and Mamoru was unconscious on top of him.

There was a heavy sting of blood that hit his nose. Sitting up, he settled Mamoru down on the ground, moving his robes aside, the mage giving a hiss as he stirred. "IT HURTS!"He keened, grabbing Ludwig's hand.

The vampire bit his lip. The wound was like nothing he had ever seen before. As the men go closer, there was a click of something metal just near his head. One was behind him, pointing the end of a metal stick at the back of his head.

"Get up slowly and back away."He was ordered. Ludwig didn't budge.

"Do it!"The man barked, hitting him with it.

"Only if you promise me that you will help him."Ludwig said lowly, indicating to Mamoru who was sobbing in pain.

"I can't promise that."He answered. "Especially to a monster like yourself."

"You hurt someone who had nothing to do with your goddess-damn vampire hunt! Help him, and I will go quietly."Ludwig begged, turning around to look down the barrel of the metal stick that was poking him in the back of the head. He had never seen a gun before and now he was glad that he didn't.

The men had joined them and listen. One nodded, the man nodding in return to Ludwig's request. Putting his hands behind his head, four came to grab him, putting him in thick metal shackles along with something that looked like a horse's bit in his mouth. Most likely to make sure he didn't try to bite anyone. Looking back behind him, two had started to wrap Mamoru up in a blanket, carefully lifting him up onto a stretcher they brought with them.

A cart, down the nearby dirt path, pulled up. Ludwig and Mamoru were loaded into the cart, the chain of Ludwig's shackles put over a hook so now his hands were over his head. There were two more like himself in the cart in the same condition. One with the same sort of hole in his shirt like Mamoru had. Mamoru, however, was put into a second cart that came that the hunters loaded into.

It was the second longest trip that he had ever taken. Ludwig's dead nerves were so on edge that his muscles burned. It was nearly dawn when they arrived through two big wooden gate doors into a compound that was beyond belief.

Everywhere there were thick stone buildings with holes drilled into them. People inside were screaming with agony as the sun started to rise, making the vampire's elongated ears twitch. When the door opened, the dawn's light poured into the windowless carriage as they were each unloaded and put under a shade temporarily to be inspected.

A man came by, dressed in army-style clothing. Most likely to make sure he could withstand an attack. As he looked at the first one, a female of Silvanesti origins. "Building 1."He ordered. She was taken away and the same man came down the line. The next was a man of Suna but he had been injured by the same kind of weapon that had hurt Mamoru.

"Tsk. Such a bad condition. He won't make it. To the post."He ordered. The Suna man, looked around as he was dragged out of the shade and to a metal post that had been rammed into the ground. There were ashes everywhere and two more like him were chained to it. Most likely, to be killed with the rising sun.

Next was Ludwig. The man stared at him, peering into his eyes. Pointing to a hunter, the bit was removed from his mouth and Ludwig stretched his jaw. "Very grateful for that."He said, sticking his tongue out some.

"So you must be the compassionate Mage-Sucker, huh? My men tell me you were very compassionate in your attempts to save his life. Why didn't you just change him?"The inspector questioned, grabbing his chin.

"That's not something I wish upon him."Ludwig answered bluntly. "Where is Mamoru?"He asked.

"Taken care of. We have a good infirmary here with the best mage healers around for my men. Can't go losing one because one o' you broke an arm or ripped some skin off. He'll be put to work like the rest of them."The inspector said, indicating to a white building with a red cross on top of the door. Ludwig looked over then turned around to look back to the inspector.

"I'm grateful."He said, watching another hunter come over and whisper something into the inspector's ear. The inspector's eyes widened, looking to Ludwig and the infirmary and back again. He paled, but cleared his throat.

"It seems we have a nobleman vampire on our hands. My men inform me that you are indeed the brother to the 9th Lord Rhoma and heir to the Grayharte throne?"The man said. "This is a fantastic first. Forgive me 'your highness' for our roughness towards you."

His tone was a little too smug and confident for someone who was in knee-deep shit trouble. Ludwig's eyes narrowed. Leaning down, since the man was shorter than he was, Ludwig stared. "His Lordship watches you, you know. Releasing myself and Mamoru will save you and your men a very painful punishment."He said. There was a hard hit to the back of his neck. Ludwig hit the ground face first, groaning a bit.

"That tone won't be taken with me. Even the most feral of dogs can be trained to obey a master. Add him to the body guard collection, would you? He'll be very useful once he's broken in."The inspector said as Ludwig was picked up to his feet again. They dragged him off to a building closes to one of the largest of the entire compound. Once inside, they took him to one of the thick-walled cells, removing the shackles and tossing him in.

Ludwig grunted when he hit the ground, sitting himself up. "Well…could be worse…Could be further away from the infirmary."He mumbled, brushing himself off.

"Actually, it's much worse."A voice called from across the hall in another cell. Ludwig turned around, seeing another man sitting across from him. From the looks of it, he used to be a soldier.

"How so?"Ludwig asked, sitting back down cross-legged on the stone floor.

"Do you know what BG stands for? 'Body Guard'. I had heard rumors all over the place of Vampires being controlled by something to fight and bring in other vampires as well as protect the bastard that runs this place. Your lover is a mage isn't he?"The soldier inquired.

"Y-yes…how did you know?"Ludwig asked in return.

"Your skin. It's not healing from blisters or anything…and you have the smell of incense on you. From the looks of your clothes, you're originally from Grayharte, are you not? My Grandfather served under the King's army."He said, his eyes closing. This man was oddly calm for this situation.

"Wait, controlled? They can't control us can they? It's impossible….isn't it?"Ludwig said, grabbing the bars of the prison cell.

"Why do you think they have mages here and only keep a select few vampires? There's about twenty of us total now, including yourself."The soldier answered. "By the way…What is your name?"

"Twenty…"Ludwig exhaled, running his fingers through his hair. Reyah be damned for the situation they were in. "Ludwig on Grayharte. Heir to the throne of Grayharte…and brother-in-law to the 9th Lord."

"I am Matthew Silthens."The soldier answered.

"Nice to meet you…I guess."Ludwig said, moving so he was leaning against the bars of the cell, looking towards the blank and bland wall. "This is hell…All we wanted to do is get somewhere safe. Somewhere where we didn't have to worry about these damn hunts."

"You were thinking about the Vampire nation, weren't you?"Another voice called out from the cell right next to Matthew's. Another man peeked out. His hair was long and scraggily, an eyepatch across his right eye but he still had quite the handsome face. Probably an assassin of some sort. "I've never been but everyone's been talking about it like it was like some fuckin' holy place."

"Kir, mind your language."Matthew warned.

"Shut the fuck up, soldier boy."Kir spat. "You really wanted to get there of all places? If a hunt ever took place there, it would been whipped clean off the map."

"Shut up, Kir!" Another voice called, this time female.

"Suck it, bitch!"Kir cursed. Matthew rolled his eyes, pulling his hand back and punching the wall. A piece of the ceiling rattled loose and smacked Kir on the head, the vampire scowling. "Ass…"

Ludwig's eyes were closed the whole time, trying to concentrate. Since taking Mamoru's blood, he felt that they're bond as soulmates had grown stronger. Touching his hand to his neck, he tried to see if he could feel out the mage's presences. He wasn't too far away but it wasn't as strong as it was before. He was weak, possibly of blood loss.

"Mamoru…"he whispered softly, running his fingers along the mark.

/"Ludwig…"/A voice echoed back in his head.

"Mamo?!"Ludwig said, sitting up and looking around in the dark. No one was there and the two who had started squabbling in their cells were silent.

/"Ludwig…Are you okay…?"/Mamoru's voice called again.

"Yes…yes I am. They didn't do anything…are you…Your wound…"Ludwig said, talking out into the air.

/"I'm ok…I think…Where are you? I can hear you but I can't see you."/ He called again.

"In a cell…It's not far from the infirmary from what I saw but there are no windows…Your blood must be letting us talk like this."Ludwig answered.

/"Then…You aren't by my side…"/ Mamoru's voice waned, the sounds of sobbing resounding in Ludwig's ears.

"It'll be alright…I'll see you soon…I know I will."Ludwig said, getting up from the floor and moving to the wall that was closest to the outside. Placing his hand on it, he ran his fingers along it, trying to visualize it as if it were Mamoru's face, his cold fingers caressing his skin.

/"Knowing you're alright…brings me enough comfort."/Mamoru added and then everything went silent.


It was four days…then one week before Ludwig started to feel the pains of not having fed. Laying in his cell, he could hear the groans and growls of others like himself who probably hadn't fed in several weeks. They didn't feed them and no rats dared go into the cells since there would be no scraps of food for them. They would end up being food.

Mamoru had kept trying to contact him, getting a few messages through. As he grew weaker, the mages voice started to sound further way. It was the one and a half week mark that he had come to be imprisoned at the compound when they received their first meal. It was just a watersack but somehow they had managed to fill it with the sweet, delicious taste of blood.

Ludwig made his last for as long as he could. When it was empty, he tried to see if he could hear Mamoru's voice again but nothing came to him. Not even a whisper. It was, however, replaced with a more sinister sounding voice in his head that repeated the same thing over and over.

/"Protect, kill and retrieve all those who oppose the order of nature. You will become the army of undead to serve under the righteous light of humanity."/It said. Ludwig clamped his hands over his head, grinding his teeth.

"Mamoru…Why…"He groaned, curling up into a ball. "I can't hear you…I'm so scared…"

The next day, they received a fresh sack of blood which everyone, including Ludwig, devoured. The sinister voice in his head started to get steadily louder every day, every time that he fed but he couldn't stop. One day there was a loud commotion outside of the building, someone barging in, looking around and calling the same name over and over again.

"Ludwig! Ludwig where are you?!"Mamoru called, stopping in front of one cell. "There you are! Are you okay? I haven't heard from you in days!"

Ludwig stared, his eyes half-lidded as he stared at the form in front of him. He could sort of figure out who it was, little details here and there. "Ma…mo…ru?" Ludwig answered softly.

"Yes, it's me…"Mamoru said, pushing his hands through the bars, extending them to hold him. Ludwig never came. "What's wrong? Did they do something to your legs?"

Ludwig shook his head, crawling over slowly and sliding into Mamoru's restricted embrace. The mage smelled him, running his fingers through Ludwig's hair and knew that it was really him. However, something seemed off about him. Ludwig didn't embrace him back. "Ludwig…are you alright?"He asked, bringing his hands to hold his face.

"I…don't know…"Ludwig said, his eyes distant. They looked like they were seeing right through him to the wall on the other side.

"That's not the Ludwig you know anymore, mage."A voice spoke right beside him. Mamoru's head whirred around, a well dressed man standing very close. "He now belongs to me."

"Ludwig doesn't belong to you! He's not a toy or a piece of clothing. He's a person, a being."Mamoru scowled.

"Any 'person' can be made into a 'thing'. Just watch. Ludwig, who are you?"The man asked, addressing the vampire who stared so distantly.

"I am your servant…You are my master. I follow your orders to a 't'. You are the voice that guides me…"Ludwig said monotonously.

"That's right."The man said, a smile sliding across his face.

"You are…the voice…in my head."Ludwig said, looking to the man almost with surprise.

"Voice? I knew there was something blocking me from Ludwig. You're the one who's been doing it. What did you do to him!?"Mamoru demanded, getting up but something snagged onto his robes, pulling him down again. Ludwig had grabbed Mamoru's shoulders, forcing him down again with a tight squeeze.

"I've given him my blood…it's been laced with a spell that allows me to turn these…monsters into decent men. Bodyguards and assassins all of them. They will be my grandest army in the fight to cleanse this earth of the evil blood-drinkers."He said, leaning down and grabbing Mamoru's chin. Ludwig's fingers flinched on Mamoru's shoulders, just seeing that man touch him. Something screamed at him, telling him to make it stop.

"D-don't…touch…"Ludwig said, his voice in a low growl.

"W-wiggy?"Mamoru asked, his voice slipping into a whimper.

"Don't touch…Ma…mo…"Ludwig said again, his hands trembling.

"I see you still have some of your mind left. No matter. Another dose of my blood and you'll be just like the rest. Get this mage out of here and back to work."The man ordered to one of the guards, who, with three more came to drag Mamoru out of the prison kicking and screaming. Ludwig sat there frozen, staring down at the ground.

The same man, Malacai was his name, slipped his hand through the bars and cupped the vampire's chin gently. "You will be a great leader in this…With your influences, I'll be able to cleanse every country of the fiends. I'll find that Vampire Country even if I have to burn every city to the ground…"He said, running his thumb along Ludwig's bottom lip.