Willam V

Despite hailing from a completely different village, Merith was the first to arrive at Willam's meeting. The leader of Heart Hill entered the room tentatively, looking around at the six empty chairs splayed around a round oak table.

Willam turned from the window and smiled at the ambassador. "If you were looking for the other councillors, I'm afraid to inform you that you're the first to arrive."

"Oh. Willam." Merith smiled apologetically. "I thought I had the wrong room for a moment."

"You're just early, Merith," he chuckled. "Please take a seat."

Willam abandoned his post by the windowsill and claimed a chair at the round table. Merith seated herself opposite from him, and they chatted about formal pleasantries while waiting for the other councillors to arrive. Although he had never visited any bases to the south, Willam heard all sorts of remarkable things about the beauty of Heart Hill. They were also a resourceful group of survivors who set a good example for smaller tribes in their region. Not only was Heart Hill the Den's principal ally, but they were also a great trading partner that Willam had come to depend upon.

Kevan arrived just a few minutes later, organized as always. The head steward greeted Willam and Merith warmly, and took a seat beside the ambassador. If Willam recalled correctly, Kevan, Jeyne, and their friends had been granted safety and shelter at Heart Hill while they were travelling north. The steward was clearly happy to see Merith, so Willam excused himself from the round table to let them catch up with each other's stories.

He was pacing around by the vaulted castle windows when the fourth councillor arrived. The sun had just reached its zenith when Clarisse entered the room and seated herself, all without a word. She nodded politely to everyone else present but otherwise stayed to herself. The stablemaster was punctual as always, showing up at exactly midday, like Willam had requested. After working with the quiet woman on several occasions, Willam observed that she did exactly as was asked of her, no more, no less. He supposed that he admired those traits. Although very quiet and reserved, Clarisse always performed to the best of her abilities. Even if she was somewhat disconnected from the other humans at the Wolf's Den, she got along remarkably well with their animals.

Maron arrived at the meeting a few minutes late, red-faced and puffing. The blacksmith apologized for his tardiness, something about an incident at the forge. Willam just smiled and invited him to the table. It was not in Willam's nature to command others through fear or respect. He was one of, if not, the oldest person in the tribe. Others looked to him for wisdom and advice, not commands and orders. Willam much preferred acting as a counsellor than a commander, yet he did not shy away from his duties when they were demanded of him. Otto and Jeyne were both in the mountains doing a final review of all the base locations that had been identified over the past few weeks. The two leaders of the tribe had entrusted Willam with ruling over the Wolf's Den while they were gone. However, Willam was loath to lead by himself, so he had assembled a council to decide all matters of importance. He enjoyed listening to the ideas of others and balancing their wisdom against his own. Willam was neither an authoritative figure like Otto, nor an administrative genius like Jeyne. He was an entirely different type of leader, and he would guide the tribe in his own way. That meant hearing the opinions of others and deliberating the best course of action with their advice.

Although these men and women are more than capable at their jobs, some of them certainly need to work on punctuality, Willam reflected to himself as his gaze glanced over two empty seats. The old man sighed, but took the opportunity to catch up on his friends' lives. Sometimes Willam went days without seeing others in a social setting; since he was the tribe's healer, he was usually confined to interacting with the sick or injured. He would occasionally get to see his friends at night or during celebrations, but sometimes duty called and gravely injured patients required his attention. However, ever since teaching his assistant Myra everything he knew, the young woman had become a great help and had freed up plenty of Willam's time. Nonetheless, Willam enjoyed the break from his medical work. The conversations echoing around the council chamber were informal and pleasant, since there was no particular rush to start the meeting until everyone was present.

At last, about twenty minutes after Willam had scheduled the meeting to start, the final two council members arrived. Alys and Leo entered together and quickly seated themselves. Judging by their embarrassed looks and the way they rushed into the room, they had completely forgotten about the meeting until now. Willam just shook his head and laughed quietly to himself. His time on the Island had taught him the important virtues of patience and understanding. These youths are all so hasty and reckless that they forget the smaller details in life. This meeting will do them good, get them thinking about some finer details that might not have crossed their minds before.

Willam cleared his throat. "Thank you all for coming to this meeting. If nobody else has any objections, we'll get straight into matters."

The group nodded assent, so Willam went to the first item in his agenda: preparations for fall. There were many matters that needed to be handled, from the logistics of feeding hundreds of survivors, to the supplies and resources that would need to be gathered for the coming months. Prior to the meeting, Willam had asked a few of the council members to do a few tasks for him. Now was the time to review their efforts. "Kevan, Clarisse, Maron, have you sorted out your tasks?"

"I took inventory of all our current supplies," the head steward announced, producing a few lists from his pocket. "As it stands, we have enough food stored away to last the Wolf's Den for two weeks."

Willam frowned. That had been worse than expected. "Is there any reason we're so far behind?"

"The builders only recently finished renovating the underground storage. Before that, all our excess food was used for trade or feeding livestock. Now that we actually have somewhere to put it, we can begin stocking up on food."

"How much surplus food do you estimate we're getting weekly?" Willam pressed.

Kevan paused thoughtfully. "No more than two hundred pounds. That's enough to feed the Wolf's Den for two, maybe three days."

Willam glanced around the table. The other councillors' expressions ranged from neutral to concerned. This was plainly bad news for everyone. If things continued along the current path, they would only have a month or two of food stores during the winter. After that they would either have to rely entirely on hunting, or starve by the hundreds. Willam turned to Merith. "How are your winter preparations at Heart Hill?"

"My advisors estimate that we have enough food to last four months. We're still adding to our stores every day." Merith noticed the shocked stares, as if she had just unearthed some ancient secret. "Keep in mind however that we only have fifty survivors to feed."

Willam stroked his beard. "Kevan, is there anything we can do to build up our food stores faster?"

The steward grimaced. "Nobody will like it, but we could always start rationing our current supplies. Cut down our food intake and devote more to storage."

The other council members started murmuring amongst themselves. After a few moments, Maron said what was on everyone's mind. "If it's a choice between a few grumbles now or starvation later, I say we cut down on rations."

"Thank you for your input, Maron." Willam decided to put the matter to a vote. "All in favor of introducing stricter rations?"

The council unanimously voted for the motion. Willam scrawled down as a note for himself on a blank piece of paper. He had a nagging suspicion that the paper would be nearly unrecognizable by the end of the meeting.

"All well and good. Now there's the matter of how much we should cut down on everyone's portions by."

"Would one eighth be enough?" Merith proposed. "That's the system we've been using at Heart Hill. It's seemed to work so far, and nobody's complained much since the change is barely noticeable."

"It might work for a smaller settlement," Kevan agreed. "But keep in mind that the Wolf's Den has nearly thrice the population of Heart Hill. Nearly a hundred forty survivors according to the most recent census."

"What do you suggest then?" Willam inquired. He wanted to know the steward's opinion, since it was Kevan who handled these logistical matters on a daily basis.

"Cut down on everyone's portions by a third."

The council erupted into an incomprehensible mess as everyone tried to talk at once. Willam rapped his knuckles on the wooden table but the commotion was still too loud. Seated on either side of him, Maron and Leo noticed what Willam was trying to do, and they started pounding their fists on the table until everyone quieted down.

Willam nodded his appreciation toward the men. He raised his voice to address the council. "Please settle down. We'll have time to hear all your opinions, just speak one at a time. Maron you're up first."

The blacksmith cleared his throat. "With all due respect to the cooks, sometimes there's barely enough food as it stands. This is comin' from someone who's usually one of the last to eat. I finish forgin' tools well after the sun is down, and there's little enough left over at the feasting tables to make a full meal."

Leo, the master-at-arms, spoke up next. "If you cut down on everyone's portions equally, then you're ignoring the needs of survivors who do more labour intensive jobs. No offense intended Willam, but people like rangers, scouts, or foresters need more food than healers who sit indoors all day such as yourself."

"You bring up a valid point, Leo. You too Maron." Willam stroked his beard thoughtfully. "If we are to go through with rationing, it is clear that several changes need to be made to how food is served."

Kevan nodded. "I always thought that our current banquet-style was impractical. There are no measures in place to stop people from hoarding or taking more than necessary."

"Aye," Maron agreed. "It's especially unfair to those of us who finish our jobs later than others."

"In that case I propose we have the cooks monitor the tables and keep people from taking more than allotted. All in favor, raise your hand."

Once again, the vote was unanimous. Willam scribbled another note for himself. Good thing we're all in agreement so far.

Alys cleared her throat. "I think we've strayed a bit from our original discussion, the matter of how much to cut everyone's rations by. I personally feel one third is too much. As Leo mentioned earlier, you have to account for the more labour intensive jobs."

The master-at-arms nodded. "Exactly. I can't speak for head ranger Rodrick since he's off in the mountains with Otto and Jeyne, but I do have a bit of experience in his field. The men and women who I train to fight often become hunters or rangers. They spend entire days riding around or fighting wildlife, and deserve larger meals for their hard work."

"One third definitely feels like it's asking too much," Merith agreed. "Perhaps you should start off with a more moderate number and adjust as needed later on."

"One sixth might be better," Willam proposed.

He saw a few nods but also a few frowns. Kevan seemed particularly distraught. "Unless our hunters and foragers start bringing in more food, I doubt cutting portions by one sixth will be enough to make any meaningful change. One fourth would be better."

"I can tell you right now that nobody will be happy with that," Leo cautioned.

"And I thought we had already agreed that a little discontentment was an acceptable sacrifice for the guarantee of our future."

"If we can find a suitable middle ground, that would be even better," Maron added. Most of the other councillors nodded in agreement.

"One fifth?" Willam put forward, hoping it would satisfy both sides.

There was a lot of reluctant grumbling, but everyone gradually agreed after it was evident that neither side was willing to settle for any higher or lower. Willam cast a glance over his shoulder at the arched window. The sun was beginning its descent and they still had much to discuss. Kevan's report had taken up nearly half an hour of debate, but Willam had been expecting it to engender the most controversy. The other reports he had requested wouldn't take as long. At least that's the hope. Willam turned to address the stablemaster and the blacksmith respectively. "Clarisse. Maron. Have you sorted out your inventories as I requested?"

Clarisse nodded and silently handed Willam a list, which contained detailed information about every domesticated animal in the Wolf's Den.

Maron frowned but gave his report anyway. "Aye, Lord Willam. 'Tis a bit worse than I expected though. I can produce three full sets of metal gear in a day. And that's on a good day where nothin' goes wrong, mind you."

Willam jotted that down on his paper, tapping a finger on the desk while contemplating it. "I'm just an old man and warfare is not my field of expertise. Please elaborate what goes into a full set of gear."

"Pretty much everythin' a survivor would need in the wilderness. A weapon of their choice and tools such as axes and mining picks. Enough armor to protect most of the body, but not all. Just the places most likely to get struck. Helmet, breastplate, shoulder pauldrons, vambraces, and greaves."

Willam was not very familiar with armor terminology, but he gleaned enough to understand that Maron's armor would protect the head, chest, shoulders, arms, and legs. "Very well. How much equipment do you have stockpiled up?"

Maron scratched his head. "I've lost track of how many tools and pieces of armor I've made. It all goes into the armory or to other castles anyway, so you'll have to check with Kevan or Leo."

The head steward glanced at one of his many lists. "We currently have around thirty axes and roughly the same amount of pickaxes in our warehouse. I'd estimate the other castles have similar amounts or less."

Leo did a quick mental count. "There's well over a hundred weapons in the armory, including swords, maces, waraxes, lances, and spears. I'd wager we have twenty full sets of armour. Not to mention the extra odds and ends. For instance, there's plenty of spare helmets."

"You young men are the experts on this matter," Willam said. "Do we currently have enough supplies to equip our hunters, rangers and workers?"

"No," Leo said bluntly. "All due respect to Maron, his work is the finest quality. But there's not enough to go around. The rangers pull straws on who gets to wear armor, since there's only enough for about half of them. There's enough weapons for all our warriors. . . but barely. It's hard enough for me to scrounge up training weapons when the armory is almost always empty."

Kevan was a bit more polite. "The miners and foresters have enough tools to do their jobs. At least in the Wolf's Den. I have little knowledge about the logistics of the other castles, but I'm always arranging caravans to deliver supplies so it can't be good."

Willam nodded. In his brief time acting as Lord of the Wolf's Den, he had gained some insight as to the situations of the other castles. None of it was particularly reassuring. Letters from the Lookout Keep, Ice Harbour, and Open Hearth were constantly finding their way to his desk. They were all more or less the same: we need more weapons, more tools, more armour, more food, more men. More of everything.

Willam turned to the blacksmith. "Maron, I know you already do a lot for the tribe. And we're all grateful for your services. We'd be nowhere near as developed without your fine smithing skills. But the fact of the matter is that we need more equipment. Is there anything we can do to help speed your production up?"

Maron sighed. "Y'know, a few weeks back, Lady Jeyne asked the same question. I've thought about it a bit more. She offered to find me apprentices, but so far only Otto's squire Jon has been eager to learn. And the boy is already busy enough running the Wolf Lord's errands."

Willam considered that for a moment. "We could send letters to the other lords. Ask them to find interested volunteers. Oh! I just remembered. Joseph rescued a man who has experience making horseshoes. Perhaps we could arrange for him to visit the Wolf's Den and learn more about different types of smithing techniques from you?"

Maron chuckled. "Sure, bring him in. There's a few tricks I've learned that I could pass on, and hopefully we'll have ourselves another blacksmith. I'm mostly self-taught on forging armor anyhow, so maybe a farrier such as our man in question will help me as well."

Leo laughed. "Maron, you're far too modest. Your armor is remarkable. And I would know, since I only work with the dented old pieces that the rangers threw away. They still hold up just fine in the training courtyard."

"I can also attest," Alys said. "Your armor has saved my life more times than I can count. And your saddles are great too. The one you made for Crimson still fits perfectly."

Maron blushed from the praise. It was certainly a strange sight, seeing the burly bearded man so abashed. Willam was glad to hear the blacksmith getting complimented for his outstanding work, but they still had a lot to discuss, so he redirected the conversation back on track. "You certainly are a blessing, Maron. But once again, is there anything we can do to make your life easier?"

"I suppose you could get the miners more organized. When there's no ore, I can't do much aside from twiddle my thumbs and wait for the next delivery."

Willam noted that down on his paper. He turned to the steward. "Kevan, I'm sure you can arrange for our friends to be a bit more timely with their shipments?"

"I'll see to it once the meeting is over," Kevan promised.

Willam nodded and returned his attention to Maron. "Anything else?"

The blacksmith scratched his beard. "If we really need more of everything, I could try producing in bulk. The quality won't be as good, but hopefully it'll meet up with demand?"

Willam thought about that for a moment, then decided otherwise. "Keep up with what you're already doing. If the situation gets too bad, then we can change tactics later."

Maron nodded and settled back in his chair. "Aside from those changes, everything should be fine."

"Perfect." Willam mentally crossed this matter off his checklist. Now to see Clarisse's report. He unfurled the paper and quickly skimmed over everything she had detailed in her fine handwriting; currently stationed in the stables were twenty-seven elk, nine horses, five wooly rhinoceros, thirteen sheep, three chalicotherium, four ankylosaurus, eleven hyaenodon, and a single mammoth. It took nearly twenty-five hundred pounds of hay and grass to feed the herbivores every day, while the hyaenodon pack required seven hundred pounds of meat. Clarisse indicated that the food situation was currently sustainable; a mixture of leftover farm goods and free range foraging provided all the nutrition the animals needed. Some of the more well-trained hyaenodon were used by the hunters to track down prey, and so they ate the leftover portions of the kills. Clarisse had already made arrangements with the butcher to feed the unruly hyaenodon who were confined to the stables. Willam was satisfied with the report and felt there was nothing to discuss, so he rolled the paper up and slipped it inside his pocket.

"Everything in the stables is going well," he announced to the council. "I'm sure if matters arise, I can privately settle it with Clarisse later. Now that all these pressing issues within our base are settled, we can move onto the next item in the agenda: intertribal negotiations."

Willam turned to Merith. "Thank you for riding all this way to represent Heart Hill. As the leader of our principle ally, I'll hand the discussion off to you. What do Heart Hill and the other southern tribes need?"

Merith straightened up, glad to finally jump back into the conversation. "I was thinking about your food situation and I think I may be able to help."

Willam leaned forward. "Go on."

"Heart Hill has a large surplus of food, and we're bringing in more everyday. It's mainly been from hunting and foraging so far, but soon we'll begin harvesting our crops. In terms of food for the winter, Heart Hill is already well supplied. However, we lack the proper clothing and blankets to survive in the cold, which is where I think you can help."

Kevan nodded. "We have more than enough furs to go around. It was Otto's policy to leave no unnecessary waste when killing animals, so we have a huge amount of furs stockpiled in the warehouse."

"I think it would be in the best interests of both our tribes if we traded for these necessities. Our extra food for your extra furs. Everyone benefits."

Willam nodded. He felt there was no point of a vote since everyone was bound to agree, but initiated one anyway. It was the principles of fair representation that mattered and he wanted to hear everyone's input. The vote was passed around the table, and just like Willam predicted, turned out unanimously in favor of the trade.

Willam scrawled that down in his notes. "What of the other tribes in the south? Will they also take part in this trade?"

Merith pondered that for a moment. "I'm not entirely certain about their situations, but I know for sure that Honeysuckle is practically overflowing with food. Their orchards are busy year-round so they'll likely be eager to trade. I'll let you know more about Keswick, Oldstones, and Willow once I meet with their leaders."

"The sooner the better." Willam turned to Kevan. "Please arrange for a caravan filled with furs to escort Lady Merith home."

"I'll see to that at once," Kevan agreed. The head steward excused himself and left the council chambers.

Willam turned back to Merith. "In the meantime, is there anything else that Heart Hill needs?"

"Not that I can immediately recall. Our main concern was the furs."

"Then our next matter of discussion is the tribes to the north. How familiar are any of you with these mountain tribes?"

"I've seen their villages while I was flying Crimson around," Alys offered. "I never landed to make contact, so I can't attest to their friendliness or hostility."

"There was talk in the barracks from a party of scouts," Leo mentioned. "They claim to have met a pair of mountain men while scouting for base locations. By all accounts, the two men were friendly and even shared a skin of wine with our fellows."

"Aye, I've heard rumours of a similar story," Maron said.

"Very well, you all seem somewhat knowledgeable on this matter," Willam nodded. "I can confirm that our scouts came in contact with mountain folk. They were suspicious at first, but warmed up to our survivors after some time by the fire. Lord Otto himself also met a woman in the mountains who shared his ability to control wild beasts, though she is not affiliated with the other tribes. At least to my knowledge."

The others were hearing this for the last time. Willam had thought that at least Alys might have known about Otto's encounter, but this was plainly news to her. This may have to do with their rift. Either that or Otto's been distancing himself from the others again. . . Willam was sad to realize that his close friend was isolating himself. Otto had done the same thing after their base in the south had been attacked, and it had taken Willam's consolation to get his friend back on his feet. He hides it well, but he hates the burdens of leadership. I'll see if there's something I can do for him once he returns from his trip. Willam suspected that Otto's adventure with Jeyne would already be enough to cheer the Wolf Lord up. After all, it was seemingly only Jeyne who seemed to bring Otto joy these days.

And my best wishes to their future together. But I've got a meeting to run right now, Willam reprimanded himself. Checking up on his friend would have to wait. The tribe had to come first. Now I'm getting an inkling of how Otto feels, Willam reflected even as he resumed the discussion. "I bring this up because we need to make further contact with these mountain tribes in the future. We've already settled Ice Harbour on the northern coast, and our trading routes to the sea likely cross through their territories in the mountains. It's a wonder we haven't encountered any difficulties so far."

"They seem to be a reclusive people," Alice remarked. "They scatter or draw weapons whenever I fly too close to their villages."

Willam winced. "Try not to start any hostilities Alys. We don't want to make a bad impression."

"Don't worry, I'll fly wide around their bases next time."

The council doors opened and Kevan returned. He quickly reasssumed his vacant seat and Willam filled him in on the details he had missed. Fortunately the Head Steward was already somewhat familiar with the mountain tribe situation, as he was involved in foreign policy. Being in charge of shipping gifts and managing trade caravans meant he was often an advisor to Otto or Jeyne whenever they discussed other tribes.

With Kevan caught up, Willam resumed the meeting. "If we settle a new castle in the mountains, like Otto's planning, then we need to secure an alliance with the mountain tribes. To the best of my knowledge, the mountain folk have already lived on the Island for decades. We cannot offer them much in the way of advice or protection, so I'm open to suggestions on gifts."

"Food, wine, and the camaraderie of a feast are surefire ways to make new friends," Leo suggested.

"And a great way to bankrupt our food cellars," Kevan retorted. "Did I leave and return to a different meeting, or is this the same one where we just went over our dire food situation? We already hosted a fall festival at Jeyne's insistence and it set us back on stockpiling for the winter. I will not permit any more needless extravagances."

Leo raised his hands as if to back off. Willam could not help chuckling at the most talented swordsman in the tribe getting berated by a steward, but he knew Kevan was right. "Anything else we can offer? I was thinking maybe furs or tamed creatures. . . but they've been on the Island for much longer than us and will likely have these already."

"A friendly gesture never hurts," Alys shrugged. "If we have the resources to spare, I say why not."

"Is that alright with you Kevan? Clarisse?"

The two nodded. Willam was about to put the matter to the vote when Merith piped up. "Actually, perhaps you could try offering them metal tools? I'm not sure if they have a blacksmith and even then I doubt their talent can match Maron's. I can personally speak for my tribe and say that your fine metal products were the most appealing incentive to form an alliance."

Willam had not thought of that, but it made perfect sense. He was glad for the other councillors' opinions, especially Merith's since she brought an entirely different tribe's perspective into the discussion. Willam looked at Maron. "Do you think you could manage having the additional task of forging tools for this tribe?"

The blacksmith laughed. "I already need to make hundreds of tools. What's a few more?"

"Always glad to count on you, Maron," Willam smiled wearily. "I think we've come up with some good gift ideas. If there are no other objections, we'll prepare metal tools, some furs, and some domesticated animals."

The group nodded assent. Willam noted the decision down on his paper.

"I can prepare trading wagons to deliver the goods," Kevan said. "I just need details about the quantities. How many tribes are we delivering the gifts to?"

Willam stroked his beard. "Kevan brings up a good point. We need more intelligence on the mountain folk before we proceed. Alys, could you take Crimson and count the villages?"

"Aye. From what I've already seen, there are around a dozen or less.

"Let us know when you have a firm understanding of their numbers. The council will meet again to discuss the matter of gifts once we know how many tribes we will be contacting."

Everyone at the table nodded. Willam scrawled that down in his notes. Casting a quick glance behind him at the window, he noted that the sun was well on its descent toward the horizon. We're nearly done the meeting. Just one more important thing to discuss. Willam reached into his shirt pocket and withdrew the letter that had arrived this morning. He rolled it out on the desk, cleared his throat, and read its contents aloud for the rest of the council to hear.

"To Otto, Jeyne, or whomever this concerns,

Open Hearth is well on its way to becoming a fortified stronghold. All the support buildings and defenses are set up, and new castaways are arriving everyday. We stand seventy-eight survivors strong. However, there is one problem: we are being watched.

Last night, my men and I discovered a horrible truth. Hidden out of sight from our sentries, a group set up camp in the jungle to spy on Open Hearth. We don't know how long this has been happening but my people are unnerved. We fear an attack and request all the aid you can send us. Experienced warriors, weapons, whatever you can spare. My castellan Gerald will oversee Open Hearth in my stead.

As for myself, I mean to uncover the truth behind this other tribe. Our patrols have been combing through the jungle within a day's ride from Open Hearth but plainly this is not enough. For this reason, I will personally be leading an expedition south. Farther south than we have ever gone before. I will not idly sit by and wait for the enemy to come to us. Hopefully, my expedition will provide us with the knowledge we so desperately need.

I am taking twenty of my best scouts and soldiers. My force is large enough to defend us from the wilderness, but small enough to navigate swiftly and stealthily. If the blessing of the Island is with us, we will return to Open Hearth safe and whole. If you do not hear back from us, then at least you will have a better understanding of the threat that this tribe poses.

I leave tomorrow. Regards,

Joseph"

The council was silent for a few moments before everyone started clamouring to be heard.

"I'll rally my best warriors immediately," Leo proclaimed. "We cannot let Open Hearth stand alone against this threat."

"My forge is at their service," Maron agreed. "I can begin making new weapons as soon as this meeting is over."

"I can spare a few survivors from Heart Hill to strengthen Open Hearth's garrison," Merith added.

Alys shook her head. "We should have talked about Joseph's letter sooner! I could have saddled up Crimson and flown to their castle before the sun was down."

"Exactly," Kevan said. "What was Joseph thinking, heading out alone?"

"Joseph knows what he's doing," Willam reassured everyone. "If I know that man, he is more than capable of taking care of himself. He's the best choice to lead this expedition so put your faith in him."

"Still, we would have done well to plan this out with him," Leo muttered. "The safety of the tribe should be our first priority. We should have discussed this immediately. Then Alys could have flown to Open Hearth with our suggestions."

"It was already too late for that, I'm afraid." Willam pointed at the letter. "It takes an entire day and night to ride from Open Hearth to the Wolf's Den. Joseph already left before this letter even arrived here."

"I'm sure Joseph has a good reason," Alys added. "He made the best judgement for his people. They were practically sitting there blind. Having the right information can mean the difference between life and death, so I can see why he left immediately."

"There is no use discussing what Joseph should have done," Kevan argued. "The past is in the past. Right now, we need to make the best decisions possible to lend support to Open Hearth."

"It's clear we need to send help," Leo said. "I can easily round up thirty experienced fighters and send them over by tomorrow."

"I'll forge some weapons to send with them. If I work into the night, I can have as many as a dozen new swords. Add that to some of the other weapons sitting around the armory, and we can scrounge together twenty spare weapons."

"Don't forget Heart Hill. We can send ten archers to help guard Open Hearth."

"Very well," Willam said. "Thank you all for your help. Kevan and Clarisse can arrange transport. If we get the reinforcements mounted on elk or seated in wagons, then they can reach Open Hearth within a day or two. Walking would take too long."

"I can relay our response back to them," Alys offered. "If I leave right away, I might be able to get there before it's completely dark outside."

"Please do so," Willam agreed. "As for myself, I'll contact Lookout Keep and Ice Harbour to see if they can spare reinforcements. I assume Joseph sent letters there as well, but it's better if the entire tribe has a unified response."

The other council members nodded. Willam could tell they were eager to leave and dive right into their tasks. There was nothing else to talk about, so Willam adjourned the meeting. "Thank you all for taking the time to attend this council meeting. I know you all have your own roles to complete, so I'll let you go. Godspeed."

The councillors stood up and thanked Willam before leaving the chambers in a hurry. Willam stayed inside a bit longer to straighten the chairs and gather the papers. By the time he made his way outside and shut the door behind him, the others had already dispersed to the far corners of the Wolf's Den. Willam was standing in the middle of the castle's great hall and could not see the sky, but he assumed it would nearly be evening now. Argentum was probably waiting for him outside the castle by the healer's hut, but Willam could not attend to his pet right now. There were more urgent matters at hand.

Willam walked down the great hall toward Otto's office, passing pairs of patrolling guardsmen along the way. The grey walls of the castle loomed all around him, tall enough to accommodate even Argentum inside the massive hallway. Willam stopped outside the office, produced a key from his belt, and unlocked the door. It was chilly inside, for the fire had not been lit the whole day. Willam got the coals blazing merrily before sitting down at Otto's desk and surveying the stacks of papers piled high. He grabbed a fresh sheet, laid it down at the center of the desk, and put paperweights on the corners. After a brief pause to gather his words, Willam grabbed the quill, dipped it in ink, and started writing.

Author's Note:

DinoNerd89, Joseph definitely needs to do something and soon. Will this expedition be the answer? Perhaps. Stay tuned to find out ;) Anyway, the original base was in the northwest corner of the Island Map. Open Hearth is in the Hidden Lake. However, I started making a custom map halfway through writing so not everything has a perfect in game counterpart. All the earlier chapters (10 or so) have a tangible location.

Einria, Haha thanks! It certainly is better than getting surprise attacked by a pack of carnivores, but not by much. Fun fact: I originally planned out another flashback chapter for Otto's old life but decided against it. Both to cut the already huge story down and to focus more on the Island. But if you're really curious about characters' backstories feel free to PM me.

Taurus910, Thanks I'm glad you enjoyed! Hope you liked this one too.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my work, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Feel free to comment, ask questions, or criticize my story, review is always welcome! If you liked what you saw, make sure to check out the other ARK stories on this site! Have a great day!

- DaRumpyBurr