by Saxon Andrew
“Yes Sire.”
• • •
Harmony stood by Andy and watched the giant trees burning. She shook her head and was thankful the wind was down or the entire clearing would have been covered in smoke. When the smoke began to die down, archers would pour tar on the flames. Harmony shook her head, “You will be careful!”
Andy smiled, “Careful is my middle name.”
Harmony smiled, “These warriors are well trained and have been doing this for more than a hundred years. Just don’t give them a shot at you.”
“I’ll do my best, Love. Oh look, here comes Dottie.”
Dottie came gliding in and landed next to the clearing. She folded up her glider and ran over to Andy, “The Destroyers are moving out of the forest and back toward the beach.”
Harmony looked at Dottie, “Will they arrive before nightfall?”
“No, they’ll be lucky to get back by midnight.”
Harmony looked at Andy, “They won’t attempt to board the ship at night. They’ll wait until sunrise and start bringing them back on board.”
Andy looked at John, “Tell the archers to stop putting tar on the fires at sunset. We’ll start again when the sun is up.” John ran out into the clearing to pass on the commands. Andy looked at Dottie, “Is your team ready to take the ship when it arrives?”
“We’ve trained to do it. I don’t know what else we could do to be more prepared. You just need to make sure the warriors they send in don’t turn around before night fall.”
Andy looked at Harmony and she said, “They won’t arrive off shore until after midday. It will take several hours to complete landing operations and they’ll have to walk through the forest to get here. They won’t arrive until after midnight, if they push it.”
“Do you think they’ll push getting here?”
“I suspect they might. However, if the forest is too thick, they’ll stop and continue in the morning.”
Andy looked out at the forest surrounding the clearing and shook his head, “They’d have to be crazy to push through at night. I suspect they’ll cover half the distance tomorrow.”
Harmony looked at the forest and shrugged, “If there are enough predators, I suspect you’re right.”
John walked up and Andy said, “Get the teams to start herding dinosaurs toward the beach. Use the whistles to get them moving.”
John nodded and went back out in the clearing. An hour later they heard the roars of the dinosaurs as they moved through the thick forest. Andy put his arm around Harmony, “Tomorrow night is when this will happen. We should get some rest.” Harmony nodded and walked over to a clear place on the ground and spread a canvas. Andy sat down beside her and opened his food pouch. He worried about the red beams being seen. He would call everyone together and tell them to fire and move. No long bursts; short shots and move. Andy sat with Harmony and forgot his worries as he leaned forward and kissed her.
The archers gathered around Andy at sunset and Mark came over from the other side of the clearing. Andy looked at them, “We are going to spread out in the forest and allow the Destroyers to move past us toward the clearing. Once they’re between us and the clearing, we’ll start taking them out from the rear. It is important that you only use short beam shots and move immediately. They can see where the beams are coming from and will fire if you stay in one place. The team going after the ship will head out at around midnight tomorrow night. Once we eliminate the ground force, we’ll go to check on the ship. Are there any questions?”
Mark looked around the group and said, “The underbrush is shoulder high. Some of you will go up in the trees and shoot at them from above once the battle begins in earnest. Stay behind the trunks and duck behind them immediately after firing.”
Andy nodded and said, “Get some rest. You’re going to need it once this starts.” Andy looked at Mark, “Assign the night watch teams to keep predators away. We’ll move out into the forest about midday tomorrow.” Mark nodded and began assigning the watch teams.
John looked at Dottie, “We should go to scout out a good place to glide out of here tomorrow night.”
Dottie nodded and smiled, “Lead the way.” John stood and started walking toward the end of the clearing. Dottie caught up to him and took his hand in hers. John smiled and felt his heart beat faster.
• • •
The Ship Commander stood on the back of his ship and shook his head. It was useless to give in to his frustration and curse the elements. Sometimes things worked out as planned and sometimes a low tide ruined everything. He glanced to the north and saw the smoke still rising in the distance but knew he might not arrive in time to see what, or who, was causing it. The landing boats were on the beach but there was more than a hundred yards of muck between them and deep enough water to launch them. The troops had tried to carry one out and the ones moving the boat had sunk up to their waist in the muck. He sat down in a chair and waited for the tide to change. He’d be lucky to get under sail before midmorning. Oh well, what can you do but sit and wait.
He looked out to sea and felt the breeze blowing west; at least that was in his favor. He smiled as he watched the warriors undress and pour water on their uniforms. Pulling them out was a task in itself. He looked at the Deck Watch Leader and said, “Come and get me when they begin moving.”
“Yes, Sire.” The Captain stood and went to his cabin. The Watch Leader didn’t like this omen. The warriors would arrive on shore close to dark…if something else didn’t happen to slow them down. That wasn’t a good thing. He looked up at the sky wondering if bad luck was following them. So far they hadn’t found anything for the following fleet to raid. He shook his head and spit overboard for good luck. They were going to need it.
• • •
Mitchell soared fifteen hundred feet above the Destroyer ship and saw their frustration. He was one of the best fliers in the community but it had been hard work to fly against the prevailing westerly wind to arrive at his current location. The rising thermals from the hot land below him allowed him to gain altitude so he could dive into the westerly to gain ground. He found series of hot springs inland from the ship and used the hot air to climb to two thousand feet. He saw the tide was starting to move in and the boat that was carried out was starting to float. He smiled when no one went out to retrieve it. They waited for it to be washed up on shore. He turned back toward the hot springs as he lost altitude and climbed again. It was midmorning when the troops on shore began rowing back to the ship. The last landing boat was brought on board and the ship furled its sails about eleven.
He followed it for a couple of miles and saw that it would probably arrive midafternoon. He flew back to the hot springs, climbed back to two thousand feet and then turned west. He made it back to the clearing in forty five minutes and reported in to Mark. They were coming and the archers began getting ready to meet them. Mitchell went and joined the team who would be attacking the ship and waited for sunset. The thunderheads were starting to form over the hot land and would give them the lift they’d need to move out over the Destroyer ship. It wouldn’t be long.
• • •
Mark looked at Andy and shrugged, “I guess our fight will start tomorrow morning.”
“It looks that way. We should know their progress by how many shots they fire at predators as they approach.”
“I’ll send ten scouts out to wait for their arrival. They’ll let us know if they stop.”
Andy sighed, “Make sure they stay in the trees until they see them coming.”
Mark nodded, “I’ll send them out now before it gets dark.”
Andy smiled, “That is a good idea. Dodging predators at night is never an easy thing.”
Andy turned to Harmony, “With their late arrival, do you think they’ll wait until tomorrow to start landing their warriors?”
“No, I’m sure the one commanding the ship wants to know who started these fires. They won’t wait. They will probably stop during the night; as you sai
d, dodging predators in the dark is a losing proposition.”
• • •
The Warrior Commander saw the smoke rising as the ship sailed off shore from the plumes and estimated the fires were at least five miles inland through a thick forest. It was two in the afternoon and he knew all the warriors wouldn’t be on land until five. The Ship Commander saw his expression and said, “You have to go in now and cover as much distance as you can before dark.”
Loucious looked at the Commander and shook his head, “We will not have the element of surprise.”
“Why not?”
“Once it gets dark, I’m sure we’ll have to fight off the carnivores in the forest. Whoever is at the site of those fires will hear our guns.”
“Do you think you can walk through that forest during the day and not have to fire your weapons?”
Lou pursed his lips together and shook his head, “You know we’ll have to use them either way.”
“If you can move close enough, you might be able to catch whoever is there. They won’t be moving at night either.”
“I find it disconcerting that the fires are outside the range of the ship’s cannons. We won’t have any covering fire.”
“That’s why I suspect the fire is happening at a village. The locals have learned how far our cannons will reach and have probably built outside our range. It’s my decision and I deem it necessary for you to go ashore and move as far as you can now.”
Loucious nodded and left the quarterdeck to join his warriors who were lowering the boats to go ashore. He didn’t like putting his troops in jeopardy but what else could he do? The Ship Commander had the final say. He knew that if they had found a target or two for the following fleet, he might have waited until the next day. But none had been found; he was not going to allow a possible target to slip out of reach. He grabbed a rope and went over the side of the ship and jumped into a boat. He kept his rifle slung over his shoulder. He didn’t have a good feeling about this.
• • •
He arrived on shore and his feelings grew worse. The roars of carnivores coming out of the forest were loud…and numerous. He shook his head and called the ten Team Leaders together and said, “We are going to stay in tight formations as we move into the forest. Once it gets too dark to see, we will light our lanterns and set up a perimeter around us.”
Whiser said, “Sire, it’s almost sunset now. We won’t cover a quarter of the distance if we stop at dark.”
“You may continue if you like. However, listen to the sounds of that forest. Many of those roars are coming from the big carnivores. I will not put my command in that much jeopardy. Do any of you feel different?” The ten leaders looked at each other and no one spoke. Loucious nodded, “Good; let’s get moving and cover as much ground as we can. Whiser, you lead us out.”
Whiser knew he should have kept his big mouth shut. He went to his team and looked at them, “Form up and take the point.”
One of the warriors in his team said, “You opened your big mouth didn’t you?”
Whiser closed his eyes and shook his head, “Jacks, you take the point.”
Jacks teammate looked at him, “Neither one of you can keep your big mouths shut.” The two moved to the front of the twenty man team and led the way into the forest. The other nine teams fell in behind them and kept their rifles in their hands. The first T-Rex was killed before they covered a quarter of a mile. Six Destroyer Warriors were killed by Raptors before Loucious called a halt. They had covered a little over a mile and Loucious had seen enough. The number of carnivores in the forest was not normal. There were too many for it to have happened by chance and he wondered what he was walking in to.
• • •
The Deck Watch Leader heard the rifle shots and knew the warriors were encountering a large number of dinosaurs. He spit over the side again and worried about all the bad omens. He was thankful he was on the ship and not in the forest with the troops. He would feel differently about that later.
• • •
Leelah was high in a tree and saw the Destroyer Warriors stop and light lanterns about a quarter of a mile in front of her. They were stopping for the night. She pulled a whistle arrow out of her quiver and turned toward the clearing where the fires were still burning. She aimed it at seventy degrees above her and pulled the compound bow back and released the arrow. It left with a high pitches scream as it soared over the trees.
Jacob heard the arrow fall about two hundred yards from him; he immediately turned and fired another whistler into the air toward the clearing. The last archer of the ten scouts fired a whistler and it flew over the trees and landed in the middle of the clearing. Andy and Mark looked up as it passed overhead and Andy nodded, “Tell the archers to get some sleep. They’ll come tomorrow morning and we need to be rested. We’ll move to our positions at daybreak.” Mark nodded and went to deliver the orders. Harmony put her head on Andy’s chest and looked up. “I wish I could see the stars.”
Andy sighed, “Too much smoke. Perhaps we’ll see them tomorrow night.” Harmony nodded and put her arm on Andy’s waist. She was asleep in a few moments. Andy tried to think about the coming day but was too tired to do it and he joined her in sleep a few moments later.
• • •
Jonathan looked at the moon overhead and estimated it was about four days from being full. He moved over to the edge of the clearing and climbed up on the trunk of the huge tree that had been felled at the clearing’s edge. The branches had been trimmed with cutters and the ten fliers assigned to attack the ship were about ten feet off the ground. Dottie looked at John and said, “I guess it’s time.” Jonathan sighed and moved ahead of the others. Dottie rushed up and grabbed him by the shoulder, turned him around, and kissed him hard, “Please be careful.”
Jonathan’s eyes were still closed and he opened them and said, “When we get back, will you consider becoming my mate, Dottie?”
Dottie smiled, “Just make sure you get back. I look forward to the ceremony.”
Jonathan smiled and pulled the release on his glider. It furled around him and he started running down the huge trunk and felt the hot air begin lifting him upward. He turned slightly toward the burning fires and the hot air shot him into the air. He turned away from the fires slightly and began circling the clearing as he gained more altitude. The other nine fliers waited five minutes and then launched into the night sky. Jonathan would be the first to land on the ship. He had earned the right during training and he prayed he didn’t mess it up. He climbed and even at eight hundred feet above the clearing the heat was almost unbearable; thank God the smoke was blowing inland. At fifteen hundred feet he could see the Destroyer ship anchored off shore but he continued to climb until it began to get cold. He turned and headed toward the ship. It wasn’t going to take long to arrive there.
• • •
The ten warriors assigned to the night watch on the Destroyer Ship were all gathered at the rear of the ship. They had brought chairs to sit on and listen to the rifle fire taking place on shore. The booms would travel over the water and the warriors were betting on what the troops were shooting at, “That had to be one of the giant predators.”
“Why do you say that?”
The warrior looked at the questioner and sneered, “You never served in the attack forces, did you?”
“Well, no.”
“All six of those shots were fired very close together. That tells me that they were all aimed at the same target. It takes that many shots to bring down one of the really big predators.”
Another warrior said, “Grinly, what does three shots mean?”
“Probably shooting at a Raptor. The first shot is aimed at the legs and the following shots are head shots.”
“I’m glad I’m not out there.”
“Be thankful your sponsor gave you this position on board.”
Suddenly, Grinly turned around, “What was that?”
“What was what?”
“I though
t I heard a loud creak.”
“Get a life; this old boat creaks and groans every time a wave moves under it.”
Grinly stared out at the deck and suddenly they heard ten shots ring out. “Grinly, what’s ten shots mean?”
Grinly turned around and said, “Probably two huge predators attacking together.”
Eight more shots rang out and Grinly forgot the creak.
• • •
Johnathan circled the ship as he moved lower and saw that landing on the deck as it moved up and down in the waves was going to be challenging. He saw the rope running from the front of the huge vessel up to the top of the front mast. He shook his head and decided to go for the rope. He circled to bleed off some speed and then turned toward the rope where it was tied off at the bow of the ship. He grabbed the retract chord with his left hand and slowly glided in toward the rope.
Just as he arrived at the rope he retracted the wings and reached for the rope with both hands. He hit the rope with his chest and almost flipped over it. He managed to grab it with his right hand before he fell ten feet to the deck and felt his grip starting to go. He jerked his left hand up and managed to grab the rope before his right hand slipped off. He hung by one arm and swung his legs to the left and managed to get both hands on it. He heard the mast make a loud noise and knew the warriors at the rear of the ship had to hear it. He swung his legs up and pressed the spring release on his glider pack and the wings slid into each other. He hung on the rope and looked behind him and saw one of the warriors was looking in his direction. He hung and tried not to move. He prayed the warrior wouldn’t see the rope was sagging toward the deck. After a few moments, the warrior turned around and John slid down the rope to the bow. He removed his glider pack and laid it on the deck next to the anchor chain.
• • •
Dottie saw Jonathan almost fall from the rope and her heart went into her chest. She circled in a tight pattern above the ship and prepared to fly down and rake the rear of the ship with her red blaster but Jonathan managed to cling to the rope. She saw the ropes on the ship made landing almost impossible and was amazed he was able to pull it off. She kept her head covering on to see his progress toward the rear of the ship. He had moved more than a hundred feet toward the rear of the ship when six more Destroyers came on deck from below and joined the ten at the stern. One of them stopped and looked around. Jonathan was only ten feet from him and was frozen in mid-step.