16 #2
Kurt looked to Malea, who gave a silent nod of approval. “That should work.”
“We planned for about twenty minutes,” Nariel said, already signaling to her people. “We move in three teams. Two to sabotage, one to cover.”
Keera’s voice entered Kurt and Malea’s minds. “We’ll mask everyone’s presence from the mage. We’re keeping tabs on him.”
Kurt relayed what the virkin had said and noted the soldiers’ surprise. He went on, knowing time was of the essence and they didn’t have a lot of it to waste.
“Once you’re done,” Malea said to the soldiers, “make sure you get to high ground. When the dragons descend, anything left here burns.”
Kurt looked around the circle of warriors and felt the tight grip of purpose coil in his chest.
“It’s time,” he said.
The Captain nodded and gave a hand signal. No one spoke. They just moved—swift, silent shadows melting into the darkness.
The cold bit deep into his fingers, even through his gloves, but Kurt didn’t notice. His entire focus was on the massive crossbow in front of him, cradled in a reinforced wooden frame. One of at least a dozen that he could see.
His group crouched at the edge of the open storage area where parked wagons and crates loomed like ghosts in the darkness.
The small forge at the center of the mining camp gave off a dim, angry glow, but no one lingered there now.
Most of the enemy had bedded down, though sentries lazed near the center of camp, and patrols came around the perimeter once in a while.
In fact, they had just gone past, which meant this was their opportunity. The patrol, judging by what they had already observed, wouldn’t be back this way for at least a half hour.
“Go,” Captain Nariel’s voice whispered through the dark. Her team melted into the night, heading for the crates.
Kurt motioned to his team, which consisted of a pair of saboteurs, one short and wiry, the other tall and calm. They each knew their role. No chatter. No mistakes.
Kurt moved fast and silent, slipping through the dark toward the first crossbow. He crouched behind its chassis and examined the firing assembly. Just as he suspected. A notched catch mechanism that worked like a trigger system, backed by a powerful torsion coil of wound sinew and steel.
“Release pin and pressure spring,” he whispered, mostly to himself.
The wiry saboteur knelt beside him, nodding as he set to work.
Kurt moved on, checking the next one. At each station, the firing mechanism was subtly different, like the work of multiple craftsmen with one overall design.
But the weakness was the same. Remove the trigger pin, disconnect the coil, and the weapon was useless.
It wouldn’t be able to hold tension. It couldn’t fire. It couldn’t kill dragons.
By the fifth crossbow, Kurt had it down to instinct. His hands moved quickly, making short work of disabling the evil machines.
Farther across the yard, he caught sight of Malea crouched with Captain Nariel and the demolitions team. They were slipping small charges into the crates, attaching slim waxed fuses that would only light when exposed to the intense heat of dragon fire. Ingenious. And viciously effective.
He glanced up to the ridge where the third team lay in position. A flash of light, barely more than a blink, told him they were still in place and watching the perimeter. So far, so good.
Then Kurt hears a soft sound. Maybe it had been a boot scrape. It had sounded too sharp for animal noise. Kurt froze, one hand deep inside a release assembly. He heard another sound. Footsteps this time. They were all too close.
He risked a glance around the edge of the crossbow he was working on to see a man stumbling at the edge of the stockpile area, rubbing his arms, cursing the cold. Drunk or bored. Maybe both. Kurt flattened against the wagon frame and reached for one of his throwing knives.
Before he could rise, a tiny thwap broke the air.
The man’s body dropped in a slow, boneless sprawl.
There had been no cry or shout. From the rocks, the sentry team waved once.
They’d done their job and taken care of the threat.
Just as they’d planned. Kurt exhaled a relieved breath.
The body of the man would be hard to see in the darkness, and nobody seemed to be looking for him.
He could stay there another few minutes while they completed their task. Kurt got back to work.
They sabotaged all of the stockpiled crossbows in under fifteen minutes. The only concern Kurt had was for any that might already be positioned within the mining camp in case of attack. He wasn’t sure how they could find and disable anything within the camp itself. Not in the time they had left.
“All of these are done,” the wiry saboteur mouthed, holding up a length of coiled steel cord. The other held a pouch of pins. “Do you know if there are any within the tents?”
Kurt shook his head. “No idea. They’d be foolish if they didn’t keep at least one out in case the dragons figured out what was going on here.”
“Do you think we should scout a bit and see if we can find any more?” the man asked, looking uncertain.
Kurt thought about it and looked around.
The demolitions team was already falling back.
Crates were rigged, fuses coiled safely inside, all signs of tampering hidden beneath layers of straw and canvas.
He made a snap decision. He couldn’t ask any of these people to risk their lives, but he could do it himself.
“Retreat with the others. Get clear of the camp and go as high on the ridge as you can. I’ll be right behind you.” Kurt handed the little pouch of pins he held to the man and nodded.
“I can go with you,” the man offered.
“No. Go back to your Captain. But thank you for offering.”
Just then, the two virkin joined Kurt. Arch landed on his shoulder, and Kurt had to smile at the soldier’s shocked expression.
“We’ll go with you,” Arch told Kurt.
“We’ll scout the tents from above,” Keera added.
“We’ll help. We don’t want dragons hurt,” Arch confirmed.
“As you can see, I have two friends to guard my back,” Kurt told the man, still grinning. “Move quickly now. We don’t have a lot of time until the dragons get here.”
“If you’re sure…” Credit to the man for not wanting to leave Kurt on his own, but he had to go.
“I’m sure.” Kurt turned away before the man could argue further and set off toward the shadows of the closest building while the virkin took flight, disappearing into the dark night in the blink of an eye.
Kurt used all of his stealth and cunning over the next minutes as he followed the virkins’ cues toward a storage tent near the center of the mining camp.
He ducked under the back flap of the tent to find not just one, but two crossbows primed and ready for action.
They were mounted on gimbals so they could be turned easily and were placed back-to-back.
“This isn’t good,” Kurt said to himself as he studied the configuration and decided on his course of action.
First, he would remove the diamond-tipped bolts from the firing positions on both crossbows.
Then, he’d try to find a way to quietly release the tension on the bows and remove the firing pins.
He wasn’t sure that could be accomplished quickly or quietly.
He might just have to set off the crossbow and then move to disable it, but that would surely bring someone to investigate, considering the loud noise it would make. And he had to do it twice.
“Whatever you do, do it quick,” Arch advised.
“You’re out of time. The dragons are here,” Keera added.