by Auryn Hadley
"Fuck," Blaec whispered, turning back to the map on his desk. "How do we get through to hit the trains?"
Sal looked at the map again, her mind whirling.
"We might be able ta sneak through tonight?" Cyno suggested. "Break the elites into smaller groups, and slip past?"
"Maybe. But if they're in the pass, we could miss them. We want to hit them in the choke point."
"K," Cyno said. "Call Arctic."
"Already did, he's on his way."
Sal walked closer, her eyes flicking from place to place, her ears following their conversation, but only barely.
"Devil Dogs need to move now," Blaec said. "They'll never make it otherwise."
"Want me ta grab their commander?" Cyno offered.
"Arctic's bringing him on his way over." Blaec waved Cyno off, tipping his head at Sal.
"How tight's it gonna ta be with the mixed group?" Cyno asked.
"Tight." Blaec sighed.
She traced the lines of each pass in the map, looking back down to Prin, then back. "Wake them all, love. We need to be mounted in two hours."
"What are we doing, Sal?"
The door opened, but she ignored it. Standing before the large map on the wall, wearing nothing more than a too-large black shirt, she flicked her ears close and snarled. She could see it so clearly that she was surprised the lines weren't painted onto the parchment.
"Blades will have to pull a hit and run. We strike them here, which is where they should be held up for the day, and push them east. Probably a hundred and fifty to two hundred Terran regulars, minimal archers. They'll have light cav. It'll be rough. If we use the 97th, we can hold them in the valley by Three Corners. Once we make a breach, Devil Dogs, the 112th, and Star Fall will have to slip through. They need to move fast and not look back. The timing is going to be tight and we need to start hitting them just after dawn."
"How do we get out?" Arctic asked behind her.
"Have the 97th pull back, give them time to retreat, and we harry them with ranged. Send Cyno, myself, and Razor in on foot to hit them at the edges. The three of us should be enough to make them think there's more."
"How do we get out, Sal?" Arctic insisted.
She looked back at him and smiled cruelly. "We're fucking iliri. We hit them hard enough, they'll regroup for a counter attack, and we just disappear."
"Expected losses?" Blaec asked.
Sal glanced at Cyno. "Minimal. I think we can make it a lot more bluster than hand to hand. The three of us can take out at least thirty, maybe fifty of them. With you all mounted, there's another fifty, easy. That leaves the 97th working at one to one, but in a coordinated push. They'll basically just be a wall for us."
"Be careful, Arctic," a new voice said, amused. "She'll take your job soon."
"Doesn't work like that, Pig." Blaec laughed.
"Might, if she keeps this up. Might want to find some clothes before the others get here, too."
Sal glanced down at her bare legs. "Fuck," she whispered.
Blaec just shrugged. "Bring me back a shirt?"
"Yeah." Sal glanced between him and the Captain of the Devil Dogs. She inhaled deeply, smelling only their intensity, then hurried into the suite, listening to the voices behind her while she dressed.
"So that's her?" Pig asked.
"Yeah," Blaec said. "Don't ask, and I won't lie to you."
"Early morning military meetings pull a lot of officers from their beds, man," Pig said. "No need to point out which bed it was."
"I owe ya," Blaec told him.
"I still got a few to pay back. You get my Dogs through this, I'll owe you a few more."
"We'll get your Dogs through this," she said, walking back in the room. Without looking, she passed the black shirt over to Blaec. "Cyno's been drilling the 97th since we arrived. Should be a pretty even counter."
"Cyno," Blaec said, catching the assassin's attention. "You think Razor can keep up with you two on foot?"
"Yeh. That's why she chose him. Zep'd be close, but we ca na risk losing his abilities in the saddle." He flashed a proud smile back at Sal. "She's a natural."
"Do I wanna know?" Pig asked, looking between them.
"Sal's ability to see the fight? It's instinctual." Blaec shrugged. "I think you humans call it a prey drive."
Pig grinned and tipped his head toward Sal. "Yep, gonna hafta get me one a those."
"Good luck with that," Blaec mumbled.
"Get me the leaders of the units first," Sal told him. "I'm not shitting you when I said we need to move in two hours."
"I'll get Nyurin," Cyno said.
She nodded. "I'm not sure which room is Tolan's, but I know Eason's. It's next door."
"I don't want to know," Blaec told her. "Just wake him and get them moving. Arctic, get Star Fall." Blaec sighed regretfully. "I'll get Trax. Back here in thirty or less."
"Stay," Pig told Blaec. "I'll get Trax, you organize. Keep this shit moving, man. You know Trax will drag his ass. And for the record, Dogs will follow your orders as well as my own."
"Thanks," Blaec said, clasping the man's shoulder. "Owe ya another."
Pig chuckled as he made his way through the door. "Still not even, though," he called over his shoulder.
Arctic and Cyno moved quickly, but a glance from Blaec held Sal behind. When the men were gone, he said, "Pig's ok. I won't swear to any others, but Pig's ok."
Sal nodded. "I think Blaz is ok, love. I don't know why, but I do."
Nodding, he released her and turned back to the map. "That's good enough for me."
She followed the men into the dark hall but they were already out of sight. Sal could barely hear their feet on the stones of the stairs at the far end. She turned to the door beside the office and tapped.
"Blaz?" she whispered at the wood, then remembered he was human.
So she tried the knob. The door opened easily, unlocked, and she inhaled the air pushing through the crack. His scent told her she had the right room. Sal slipped inside, closing the door gently.
"Blaz?" she tried again, this time louder.
"Mm," a soft noise came from the other room.
Sal followed the sound to his sleeping chamber, stepping around the saddle rack left casually in the middle of the main chamber, and tapped at that door. When she got no response, she decided she was tired of being polite.
Chapter 19
"Blaz," Sal said, opening the door and walking in. "We need the 112th. Now."
He jumped in his bed and grabbed at covers, his eyes peering into the blackness. "Fuck!" he gasped. "Don't do that!"
She giggled and moved to the bedside table. Grabbing the striker, she lit the lamp, allowing the man to see. "You're not an assassin, that's for sure," she said, turning to look at him.
"No." He shielded his eyes against the light. "And I'm hung over and naked. Why are you here, Sal?"
"I need the 112th ready in two hours. I need your Captain in the office next door in ten minutes."
"Fuck," he said again, sitting all the way up. "Turn around or something?"
Sal laughed but turned her back, her ears following him.
"I see those ears, woman," he grumbled. She could hear the rustling of cloth as he dressed quickly. "Ok, my pride's safe."
She turned back, grinning. "Nice abs. Now, here's the short version. Cyno's back from the border, positive ID on Terran regulars hitting our civilians. Strategy suggests it's a bait and bleed, trying to pull us away from the southern load. We need to hit them before they're prepared – which should be around noon today – so that we can get you all through to make your appointments with some metal. We leave here in less than two hours."
While she talked, he moved around the room gathering the rest of his clothing. He tossed it on the bed and pulled on his boots, belt, and scabbards. His eyes never left hers.
"And stop that," Sal almost growled.
"What?" he asked.
"Just, the eye thing," she said, turning away. "Me
n only look me in the eye for two reasons."
"I was listening, Sal," he said gently.
"I know," she huffed. "To an iliri, it means you want to fuck or you're challenging me. Your body posture has no challenge. So, just blink more, ok?"
He laughed and nodded. "Gotcha. No offense?"
"No, we're good."
He stood and gestured for her to precede him from the room. "We have a plan?"
"Blades have to play the bait. I'm expecting about two hundred of them, eight of us. We'll have the 97th, but that's it. We just have to get you all through the line so you can make it to the passes."
"Fuck," he said, reaching around her to open the door. "97th are pikes?"
She nodded.
"Least there's that." He stepped through the door and into a man on the other side.
"Careful," the officer growled.
"Sorry, Captain Tharp," Blaz said, pulling Sal beside him. "We just got the word, too. I need to get Tolan."
"Hurry, boy," the Captain of Star Fall said. "Shit won't wait all day for... that." He looked at Sal with his disgust barely concealed.
Blaz shrugged and reached over, pushing hair away from Sal's face. "I'll meet you in the office," he told her, his tone more friendly than it had been before. "It was fun."
With that, he turned and jogged down the hall. Sal was barely able to keep from laughing, remembering his promise to help dispel the rumors about her and Blaec. She shook her head and turned the opposite way, following Captain Tharp into the now crowded room.
Blaec? Sal thought as she walked in. Blaz is working to plant a new rumor it seems. That I was with him last night.
Second for the 112th? Blaec asked.
She caught his eye and moved to the far wall. Yep, the same.
Any truth to it? A hint of jealousy tinted his mental voice.
Not unless you consider him pulling Calon off me last night foreplay. I told you about the intel we traded. That's it.
I'll go with it, but I want to know more later.
She nodded.
And tell Cyno, or he'll kill the fool.
Right, Sal thought, reaching out for the iliran assassin's mind. Jase?
Yeh, kitten? he thought back, a feeling of urgency in his mind.
Just a head's up, don't kill the man from the 112th.
What did you do? he asked, and she felt him pause both physically and mentally.
Made a friend, Jase, that's it. He said something last night about killing rumors and me not being affectionate enough with you in public to do it. Asked if you were protective. Just touch him first, he seems a good one. Ok?
Nothing between you?
He's human. He's also still mourning his woman. He says my ears remind him of his horse, and he likes Arden. Not exactly the romantic type. You're cute when you're jealous, though.
Then I'll be jealous more often. I got Nyurin. Almost there.
The door opened again and Pig shoved Drago Trax through it, storming in on his heels. Before it completely closed, Cyno and Nyurin slipped in. They all stood shoulder to shoulder, and the humans weren't pleased with the lack of sleep.
"Who are we missing?" Blaec asked.
"The 112th," Sal said. "Should be here shortly."
"Closest unit takes the longest to get here?" Trax asked.
"Shove it, Trax," a man said as he walked in. "I wasn't in my rooms."
Sal saw no sign of Blaz but wasn't surprised. Except for the Black Blades, only the leaders of the elite units and Nyurin for the 97th Pikemen were present.
"The bribe is moving," Blaec said without preamble. "Terric has between one and two hundred men along the border," he traced the line Sal had shown him earlier, "blocking our way into Unav. It looks like a typical bait and bleed, but we need to break the line - "
"How can you be sure?" Captain Tharp asked.
Blaec smiled at him coldly. "Arctic?"
The First Officer passed him a pouch. Blaec reached in, grabbed pins, and pushed them into points on the map. He pulled out a line of string and wound it around the pins, marking the lines Sal had shown him earlier. Then he placed markers on both Dorton and the split in the Huracan river, and traced the border between the CFC and Unav.
"See it yet, Tharp?"
"No. Spell it out."
Blaec nodded. "The metal is coming out of Escea, headed to Dorton, but claimed by the Emperor as his own. The lines are the likely routes. Each one avoids any major habitation. These two," Blaec said, pointing at the northern lines, "are moving close together. This one," and he pointed at the southern, "is vulnerable."
"And?"
"It's also in the main line of our troop deployment. In order to get through, they need to move the Conglomerate soldiers north, which means a distraction important enough to, well, distract us. Civilian casualties tend to do that. We've lost farmsteads here, here, here, here, and Three Corners is gone."
"Dammit," Tolan breathed, glancing at Sal.
"Trax, I need Azure to move out before dawn. Ride fast. Your shipment will be moving, along here," Blaec said.
They'll break north just before Bato Creek, Sal sent him.
"Heading north in this area to avoid the creek, and turning to Dorton," Blaec finished seamlessly.
"Easy enough," Trax said.
Blaec nodded then turned to the rest. "The soldiers on the border are a distraction meant to delay us long enough for the bribe to pass through. Nyurin, the 97th will support the Blades. We need to make a break and get Star Fall, the 112th, and Devil Dogs north of the line."
"Can do, sir," Nyurin said.
"You using us to hit with the breach?" Pig asked. Before Blaec could answer, he turned to Sal. "Let me ask the strategist. Sergeant Luxx?"
Blaec nodded at her, and Sal stepped forward. "If you don't mind, sir, it would help." She turned to the map. "There's approximately one hundred and fifty Terrans spread along this line, probably more. They'll be holed up for the morning in the old ruins here. Are any of you familiar with them?"
"Yeah," Nyurin said. "Long narrow valley, used to be a retreat or something in there, but it's pretty trashed now. Would give both cover and break a line that tries to hit them."
"How wide's the entrance?" Sal asked him.
"Wide enough, sir," Nyurin said. "Half a kilometer? Not a defensible point."
She nodded. "Holding them here, or close to this area, is our best chance. When we hit them, if all goes well, the rest of you will be able to head north without a delay, but I doubt that will happen."
"Talk me through it," Pig encouraged her.
"If it's as wide as Nyurin says, they'll push around us and try to cut you off. We'll need a unit to counter-flank and push them back toward Three Corners. Once they turn, break off and head north."
"112th can do that easy, it's our kind of work."
"And Star Fall won't be slowed. Thanks, Tolan," Blaec said.
"We can get the ore," Captain Tharp said, "but we can't get it back. If this is guarded as well as the reports say, we're going to have to move fast. How far behind will you be, Tolan?"
"Hour, maybe two at the most?" he asked, looking at Blaec.
"Yeah. This should move pretty fast."
Tharp nodded. "Should work pretty smooth then." He turned to Sal. "This your plan?"
She glanced up at Blaec, and he nodded. "Yes, sir," Sal said. "It is."
"You sure about the timing?"
"No," she answered, honestly. "I can only make calculations based on the speed of our own horses and the 97th's mobility. Taking both into consideration to reach the border is really the only time crunch, sir. I can't believe that the 112th's mounts would be that different from what the Blades use."
Tharp still wasn't happy. "How far from the border to the caravans?"
She glanced at the map and her head tilted slightly as she thought. "It's four hours to the border. I would expect at least an hour delay there, until we can form a breach, but we might get lucky. From there, it's eight ho
urs straight travel to your choke point, sir. Devil Dogs' is fourteen hours from the border."
"So we're fighting tired?" Captain Tharp dragged a hand down his face in frustration.
"Yeah," Blaec told him. "All of us are."
"Why should I risk my men for this, Doll? That's a hard ride with one hell of a fight at the end of it, and I don't have orders."
Sal slammed her fist into the map and all eyes turned to her. "That's Dorton, the capitol of Anglia." Her finger traced a line, following the Anglian border, "And that's what we will be calling deep shit, if this bribe makes it through." She hit the other side of the map, her face growing angry. "And this is Terric's forward line. You're a Captain of one of the most respected units in the Conglomerate of Free Citizens, Captain Tharp. You're very well-decorated and loyal to your country. A country that is proud to boast the most advanced military on this continent. I'm sure you're well aware of what happens when you get flanked."
The men in the room looked at the map again, Sal's gestures made it clear just how tight the enemy lines would be to their homes.
"You'll help, sir, because you're a damned good soldier and none of us want to lose our home." She glared at him and lifted her chin, daring him to deny the truth of her words.
"You think this will stop him?" Tharp asked Blaec.
"This time," Blaec said. "But if we can't stop this, it's a game changer. This isn't losing a town or a unit. This is about losing our country."
Tharp sighed deeply. "I'll wake the men. Tolan, we'll finalize on the ride."
"Same for me," Pig said, turning to the door. "Good work, Sergeant," he said before walking out.
The leaders of the elite units slowly made their way out, leaving only the Black Blades and Nyurin alone. The Lance Corporal waited patiently until the room was empty, then asked, "What do you need from us, sir?"
"Not me, Corporal. This is Sal's baby."
"Got a map of the valley, LT?" she asked.
"Yeah." He pulled one from a pile on his desk. "This do?"
She glanced over it. "Corporal, can the 97th get back here?" Her finger marked the eastern side of the valley.
Nyurin chuckled. "Yeah, we can. There's a ravine that runs through here, old run-off. If you can get us up to here," he pointed to where the road made a sharp turn, "I can get them down there."
