Chapter 158

Chapter 158
Green: 

They had come with everything they had. Anything they had left, they had brought it. Grenades, guns, silver knives, arrow heads. They were using all that they had to try to nip us in the bud. 

“What’s the plan?” Jer clapped me on the back. 

“Yes, please, oh great leader. Tell us what to do with all your vast battle experience,” Salazar drawled as he looked from the battlements. They were currently barraging us with grenades, trying to burn down the walls. 

I turned to look at him, ready to say something pithy, but in all truth, he was right. 

“What would you do?” No bite or bark in my tone, it caught the elder off guard. 

He stood up straighter. “Well, I uh-  the walls are built well. Let them fire themselves out for a while, empty their grenades and their arrows, and then see if we can’t get some men out to hit them from behind. Try and squash this,” 

I nodded, thinking. “That makes sense, but they still have more silver than we do. We need them to waste bullets.” 

He nodded once in agreement. That was the tricky part, but if we managed it right, we could get them to waste their resources with no way to resupply. 

“Well?” Jeremy looked between us. “What’s the plan? Sit and wait. 

“For now, yes,” I told him. 

We began emptying the ramparts, all of our soldiers coming back down to where it was safe, but soon enough, fire caught here and there. We did our best to douse the flames and keep things solid. 

Sooner or later, they’d break through, so we needed to be prepared. 

“I want arrows there and there, barbed and laced with as much wolfsbane and anise as you can manage. We might not have the silver, but we can still hurt them. No bullets.” I ordered. 

“No bullets?” Salazar spat. 

“I don’t want to use them until I know they’re necessary. They have more than us if we hold out, we can use ours when theirs are gone,” I explained. 

“Not bad, get cover here and here!” He barked out, getting our barricades ready for defense. 

The warriors fell in line. Getting barricades ready for the breach. It wouldn't be for a while, but when it happened, I wanted to be ready. I sat there watching them hit again and again, trying to break down the timbers. It wouldn’t last for more than an hour, and suddenly an idea came to me. 

“Blue!” I called for my brother, who came jogging over. 

“You and your squad, how do you feel about a special assignment?” I asked him. 

“What you got in mind?” He asked me. 

“You know the gas tankers we use to fuel the tractors?” I quirked an eyebrow. 

A grin took over his face. “I like it,” 

“No, that’ll take down the wall!” Salazar debated. 

“Yes, but on our timing, not theirs, and it’ll take out a large number of their forces. It might even get us an opportunity to push them back,” I clarified for him. 

Instead of pushing back or continuing to argue, the elder gave me a nod. 

“We need to get ready to attack then, I want archers to take place up the ramparts and you get those barricades ready to be nailed to the wall, don’t let them in…” he began barking out orders to the squads. 

“Go get the truck and hurry-“ I patted Blue on the shoulder. 

“Bringing the fight to them now, that’s more like it,” Jeremy grinned happily as he grabbed a knife from his side. 

“We take back the element of surprise, and we might just get ahead of them,” I started stretching my arms and legs, getting ready to run out of the wall and fight these bastards. 

“I see a battering ram!” A lookout called. 

“Damn,” I cursed, hoping my brother could hurry. 

“Leave it to me,” Jeremy winked at me, heading off. 

I wanted to argue, but I knew better. Fighting is where Jeremy thrived. He’d come back with another story to tell. He grabbed Keller, and they headed off in some direction. 

I walked up to the front line of men. “Alright!" I called to them, I couldnt shout too loudly because the enemy could hear. “We’re gonna open the wall. I know it might seem crazy, but if we can attack first, they’ll be caught off guard. We’re going to send a tanker through, and hopefully it’ll explode at the right time. Once the wall is open, I want you all to move on my mark.” 

They all nodded, and I kept the bile in my throat. Men and women would die today, people under my care and protection. I couldn’t falter now. I had to keep it together. This wasn’t just me, they all came of their own accord. It still didn’t help the pit in my stomach. 

I grabbed some knives and an axe, determined to keep myself alive for her sake. I kept her image out of my head, or I’d lose all focus. I’d just run to her and take her away from all of this. I couldn’t be selfish. 

Blue showed up with the tanker, and as he did, a loud explosion sounded from outside the walls. 

“The hell-“ 

“Bettering ram is gone, sir!” The lookout told me, I see Jeremy was successful. 

I didn’t want to know, I told myself, but I was going to hear anyway as the explosives expert came up to me chortling. “I doubt they expected that!” 

“Now I can set this bad boy off with either a switch or a timer, which would you prefer?” He asked, holding up a prefabricated device. 

I made a mental note to get Keller a secure workshop so that his trinkets weren’t in open areas. 

“Switch,” 

“Switch,” 

Salazar and I said it at the same time. 

“Wonderful,” Keller climbed underneath the truck, placing the charge on the bottom. Rolling back out from under the truck, he looked as if this was all he’d ever wanted. 

“I’ll go up and switch the charge,” Salazar said, grabbing it from Keller. 

I grabbed a helmet and went to the start of the warriors, ready to lead them into battle. Blue got the truck running, placing a brick down on the gas. We were hoping to hit where they had been aiming, so the truck would break through. 

I nodded at my brother, who nodded back at me. I sent a prayer up to the goddess that this would work. Then he let the truck go, steering until it was just about there, then jumped from the cab onto the ground. 

The gate splintered open, debris flying everywhere. We covered our faces, and I held fast, waiting with Salazar. He held on until the truck was in the thick of their awaiting troops. 

BOOM! 

The fireball blazed high into the air over the cover of our walls, a mushroom cloud of smoke and flame. Screams and cries filled the air as our plan had worked. 

I didn’t wait, I charged forward through the hole, men and women at my back screaming for victory.