Dax left after his fourth ale, and watched as the innkeeper went door to door, handing out chunks of ham to the villagers.
This was a good village if you were a bandit.
They knew how to keep their mouths shut and their heads down, so they didn’t draw the attention of the authorities. Plus, they were willing to make a trade to get what they needed. Some had too much pride for that, and you couldn’t trust a prideful man not to do something dumb.
"Did you get the news you needed?" Princess Alexis asked as the Commander returned to the camp, smelling vaguely of cheap ale.
"I did. The village is starving, there are no boys or young men left, and the Nobles have claimed most of their girls as well. They have no love for King or Country. But most importantly, there is a major military training facility northwest of the village, across the river.
That is going to be too much for us to deal with, but if we can embed some scouts in the area, we should be able to send reports of troop movements the moment they leave.
Good for us, good for anyone we can contact." Dax reported.
"I trust the cost wasn’t too high?"
"A single kilo of smoked ham. I believe that we should send men to the village tomorrow with a few sacks of barley for planting, and some more essentials. Not enough to raise suspicions, but enough to keep the locals quiet.
They should let us operate out of here for a while if we do." He suggested.
Princess Alexis considered the options, then nodded. "We won’t be here more than four or five days before it’s not safe anymore. But if we need to come back later, I want the villagers on our side."
The next morning, the scouts were sent out, along with a pair of more social soldiers who would make the delivery to the village.
They were sure not to send anyone who had the signature Cygnia blonde hair, which was a bit paler than the rich gold of Dominic’s hair and horns. That would make it too obvious that they were foreigners and not bandits or deserters.
"Commander, Princess. We’ve got reports of a military unit moving out. One hundred infantry, no vehicles. No confirmation yet, but the scouts who went to the village suspect that they’re one of the so called ’procurement teams’ that scour the villages for hidden wealth or military age residents and collect the livestock and crop tithes." The scouts reported late that evening.
Princess Alexis smiled. "How far are they from their first village stop?"
"They are stopped for the night, ten kilometres from anything. They normally start at the far side of their rotation, so they can herd the animals straight back to the military camp." He explained.
The Princess took out her topographical map of the area and the soldier pointed at the spot the unit was resting.
"Skip the artillery. Send twenty scouts on horseback before it’s dark and eliminate them. Take everything." She ordered.
The Mechanical horses were draped with cloth, as an attempt to camouflage them and disguise their silhouette on the skyline when the riders were laying flat on their backs. So, there was some hope that they wouldn’t immediately give the unit away.
But it got dark fast in the hills, and Dominic was left waiting uneasily in the dark for reports from the unit.
Finally, the report came in.
"They got them all without any casualties, and stuffed them in an old ice shed, then buried the door. With some luck, it will take a few days or a week before anyone finds them." The runner finally reported.
"Good work, gentlemen. Settle in for the night, and we will wait for more reports of troop movements." Princess Alexis congratulated him.
Dominic woke the next morning with Princess Alexis wrapped in his arms, snoring quietly as the sun came in through the window shutters. It was a shame to have to get out of bed, but the morning reports would be ready soon, and he wanted to know if anyone had reported the soldiers missing yet.
How long it took them to send a team looking for the soldiers would be the baseline for their response time to any other attacks that were launched in the region.
"I’m awake, I just didn’t want to get up and face reality yet." Alexis informed him quietly a few seconds after the snoring stopped.
"That’s fine. I wasn’t ready to get up, either. But I suppose that we should see what the scouts have found this morning."
Today’s dress was nearly the same tan colour as the dried leaves in their camp, and Dominic made sure that Alexis’ outfit was perfect with the decorative armour she wore before heading out.
It was odd to see her in such light armour, given her status as a Paladin. Her formal armour was nearly impenetrable. But in this, she would have to rely much more heavily on barrier and Mage Armour type spells for defence.
"Good morning, Lord and Lady. No movement reported from the military camp this morning. However, we have seen an opportunity. They receive a train car of recruits once a month, according to the locals. It’s due in just a few days.
The recruits have all been conscripted, and they’re kept under lock and key until they reach the camp.
The villagers suggest that if our group of friends has the manpower, nobody would be heartbroken for their train not to make it to the camp." Commander Dax reported.
Then the Commander paused.
"There was another request. I, uh, don’t know if it’s a good idea. But the boys want mortar launchers in rifle form. You know, ones they can fire while moving or standing. It would be easier than setting them up."
"Like firing fireworks at their friends? It wouldn’t be even remotely accurate at longer ranges if you’re not planting it. But if you want to just shoot people in the face with a mortar, I don’t see why I couldn’t make them." Dominic hesitantly agreed.
This was either going to be a terrible or a brilliant idea.
Commander Dax smiled as Dominic seemed to accept the idea.
"We collected a lot of clay from the river and filtered it to get rid of debris. We can cut it into sheets if you need. I don’t know what it takes to make the tubes, but they look like they’re just tubes, and the mortars are the magic part."
Dominic nodded. "If you really wanted, you could light the mortars and throw them at people. You might die if you don’t have a good arm. But you could do it."
"How would you light them?" Dax asked, confused.
"There is a rough spot in the tube, and flint on the mortar fin next to the wick. You could light the fuse with a lighter and throw it as it starts to fly. But don’t do that. It might blow up in your hand.
Actually, give me a minute, and I think that I can make a mortar rifle with a trigger and all. Like the old flintlock rifles, it just needs to ignite the mortar. I imbued the fuse with black powder to help it light, so only a small spark is enough." Dominic agreed.
Dax patted him on the shoulder. "Trust me, it will be brilliant the second time we use it from horseback.
I make no promises about the first time."