Tinker's War (The Tinkerer's Daughter Book 2) (30 page)

“Do you have more of these?” I said.

“Not yet. One of the smiths made molds last night. We should have one for each gyro ready by tonight.”

“Well done,” I said.

“Thank you, but that’s not all. Take a look at these.”

He opened a box on the table and pulled out a round metal ball. He handed it to me and I turned it over in my hands, examining it. It appeared to be made of two halves held together by a thin screw. “What does it do?” I said.

“Do you remember when the Kanters attacked years ago? You and your pilots used to drop cannon charges on their heads.”

“Of course. We disabled their wagons and catapults that way.”

“Well, this is similar in concept. This ball contains an explosive charge that will separate the metal into pieces of shrapnel. It’ll tear right through the hull of a dragon ship. Anybody standing nearby won’t be too happy either.”

“I see. Is that all?”

“No, I have one more thing.” He guided me around the table to a wooden box lying on the ground. He opened the top and revealed another metal ball, this one much larger. It looked like a single man might not even carry it.

“That’s another explosive?” I said.

“Just like the others, but big. Big enough to take out an entire dragon ship in one swoop.”

“It looks heavy. Will that fit on a gyro?”

“It weighs as much as a full-grown man. It will fit, but I haven’t figured out how the pilot will launch it yet. We can put it on a gyro, but throwing it off and flying at the same time looks to be a trick.”

“Let me know if you think of something,” I said. “How are we doing on fuel?”

“Your mechanic Cleff mixed up more than we could ever use. We’ve got three full barrels of it on a wagon back there,” he gestured to a wagon standing near the back of the ship. “I like to keep a good distance between the fuel and the explosives.”

I laughed. “Good thinking, Cabol.”

Robie and the other pilots had landed, so I headed over to have a word with him. Robie was walking around the gyros, showing the new recruits how to inspect their vehicle for damages. “I’m surprised to see you out here,” he said as I approached. “Analyn must have had a fit.”

“I didn’t ask,” I said. “How are the lessons going?”

“Very well. Everyone has a good grasp of the basics. At least as much as we had when we fought the Kanters.”

“The Kanters couldn’t fly,” I reminded him.

“Yes, well there is that.”

“You like tired. Why don’t you rest?”

“I can’t. The pilots are going to take a nap but I’ve got to oversee the work on these planes.”

“Take a rest,” I said.

“Breeze, I can’t-”

“That’s an order, Robie. I’m still your commander, remember?”

He sighed, clearly facing a dilemma. How could he turn his responsibility over to me if I wasn’t even supposed to be out there? And yet he also knew that he needed rest, and would be glad for it when the time came. “I’ll still be here either way,” I said. “I’ve been sleeping for the last two days, and I don’t even need as much sleep as a human.”

“All right,” he said at last. I’m not going back to the mansion, though. Analyn’s already going to throw a fit when she sees you’re gone.”

“Go to the
Flying Pig
,” I said. “I think Tinker’s room is still unoccupied.”

He sighed, and went wandering back toward the city. As I watched him walk away, I suppressed my urge to call out to him. There were so many things I wanted to talk to him about; so many things that had happened between us. I wanted to discuss what it all meant for us, for our future, but the timing wasn’t right.

Instead of calling out, I watched him walk back into the city and then I turned my attention back to the gyros. We had weapons to install and repairs to do, and I wanted everything perfect before the Vangars arrived. Little did I know that we had even less time than we’d expected.

Chapter 27

The sky turned dark at noon and within the hour, it began to rain. It was a cold autumn rain, the kind that sends shivers down your spine and drives sensible people to their hearths with a warm mug and a book. For us, it meant more work.

I helped Cabol and the others move their tools and equipment into the shelter of the nearest dragon ship, and then we pushed the gyros in as well. By the time we were done, the weather had turned furious. Heavy clouds pressed down, sucking all the color out of the world and making the hairs rise on our arms and necks as lightning flashed across the sky. The thunder that rolled across the plains made us think of the dragon ships, and drove us to work even harder.

Analyn found me eventually, but I was well enough that she couldn’t convince me to leave my work. Robie arrived about the same time. All three of us were standing there when one of Analyn’s newly appointed soldiers came screaming up the road on a steamwagon. He was an older man, balding with a white beard. He was driving so fast we thought he might have lost control. He pulled the brakes just beyond the dragon ship, locking the wheels up so that he slid several yards on the wet ground.

“Highness!” he shouted, jumping off the wagon and running towards us. “My Queen, you must come!”

“Archold, are you mad?” she said. “What’s gotten into you?”

“Vangars on the south side of the city,” he said breathlessly. “Come!”

All three of us broke into a run. We climbed into the steamwagon at once, and Archold released the brake and twisted the throttle. We took off like a rocket, fishtailing back onto the road as we went racing into the city as fast as the steamwagon could carry us. We shouted for people to get out of our way as Archold navigated the streets, sliding dangerously as we cornered around the square. Then we turned onto Main Street and shot out of the city, leaving a crowd of mystified onlookers in our wake.

A group of soldiers had gathered at the front of the city. They were armed with cutlasses and blunderbusses and they were staring out across the plains as we arrived. In the distance, I saw a lone figure on horseback, trotting slowly towards us.

“What happened?” Analyn demanded. “Where are the Vangars?”

“There were three of ‘em on horseback,” Archold said.

“They left,” said one of the others. “All but the one…”

I narrowed my eyes, staring. “That’s no Vangar,” I said. “That’s a human.”

“Drive,” Analyn commanded. Archold shot her a worried look and then thought better of arguing with his queen. He twisted the throttle and we took off, heading straight for the stranger in the distance.

As we got closer, I realized that the man was slumped over in the saddle, barely able to carry his own weight. I knew instantly from the shape of his build and his wild, wooly hair that it was Tinker. My heart froze in my chest as I recognized him. I immediately assumed the worst. He was dead. They had killed Tinker and sent his body to us as a warning.

Despite the great speed at which we were traveling, I rose to my feet, oblivious to the danger. Robie caught my hand and tried to pull me back but I resisted, barely aware of him. I leaned forward, my hands clutching the rail in a white-knuckle grip. “Tinker!” I shouted at the top of my lungs. “Tinker!”

The horse shied back as we drew near, and Archold braked the wagon so as not to frighten the beast. As we rolled to a stop, I jumped to the ground and went racing up to him. The horse danced sideways fearfully, and Tinker’s body began sliding out of the saddle. I leapt forward to catch him, but Robie was already a step ahead of me. He caught Tinker and I reached out to help lower the old man to the ground. I couldn’t believe how light he felt. Then I saw the withered flesh on his face, his cracked lips, and I knew. They had starved him to death.

I touched his neck, desperately searching for a pulse. To my shock, I found something. It was so faint I hardly dared believe it at first, so I bent forward and put my cheek to his face. Despite the driving rain and wind, I felt the unmistakable warmth on his lips.

“He’s alive!” I said. “We need to get him warmed up.”

We loaded Tinker onto the steamwagon and raced back to the mansion nearly as fast as we’d driven out of the city. We left Archold behind to make room for Tinker. Analyn guided the wagon expertly through traffic, and having seen us pass through once already, no one delayed in moving out of her path. Within minutes, we were back at the mansion.

Robie easily carried the malnourished old man upstairs to an unused room. Robie went to fetch a bed warmer and Analyn rushed to the kitchen for tea and stew. I stripped Tinker out of his wet clothes and covered him with a heavy feather blanket. I pulled a chair up to the bed and sat next to him, placing my hands on his chest.

Tinker’s skin was cold and clammy, his breathing shallow and labored. I instantly discerned that he had been beaten badly and had gone without food or water for several days. I searched for major wounds, hoping that I might speed his healing, but I found only bruises. At his age, Tinker simply didn’t have the strength to withstand the Vangars’ abuse.

Analyn returned as I was working and insisted on pouring some water down his throat. I didn’t argue. Tinker needed the hydration badly. She put the cup to his lips, and to my surprise, Tinker drank deeply. After downing several large gulps, he turned his head away from the cup and his eyes fluttered open.

“You’re okay,” Analyn said, pressing her hand to his forehead. “You’re safe now.”

Tinker grimaced as if he were in pain. “No,” he said weakly, his voice rasping with dehydration. “Not safe.”

“Hush,” Analyn said. “Sleep now.”

“No!” he tried to sit up, but barely had the strength to move. I leaned forward, entering his field of vision, hoping it might comfort him to see my face.

“What’s the matter?” I said. “How can I help you, Tinker?”

He shook his head, closing his eyes. “Vangars,” he said dryly. “Twenty-four hours.”

Analyn’s eyebrows shot up. “Twenty-four hours? That’s when they’re going to attack?”

“Surrender,” he said, “or die.”

He broke into a fit of coughing. When he was finished, Analyn gave him another sip of water. Then he lost consciousness. She turned to me, her face etched with worry. “Can you help him?”

“No, there’s nothing wrong with him,” I said sadly. “He just needs rest. He needs water and food, if he can find the strength to eat.”

“Let’s let him rest in peace then,” she said. “We have much to discuss.”

The three of us went to the kitchen. I took the heavy teapot from the woodstove to serve Analyn and Robie, but she slapped my hand and took the teapot from me. “I’ll serve myself, thank you very much,” she said. “And I’ll serve you two as well. Do not let this
queen
business go to your head. I don’t plan for it to last.”

“What are you talking about?” Robie said. “You
are the queen.
There’s not much you can do about that.”

“You’d be surprised,” she said. “After all, I am queen. If I say things are going to change, you’d better take it seriously.”

“Whatever do you mean?” I said. “Will you step down from the throne?”

Robie snorted. “Is that even allowed?”

“Not exactly,” Analyn said, filling our teacups. “I have something else in mind, a system where every citizen will vote to choose their leaders.”

Robie laughed aloud. “You want to put the peasants in control of the government?” he said.

She fixed him with a stern gaze. “And why not? It’s their land, isn’t it? They are the farmers, the smiths, and the bakers. They’re the ones who make everything work. It’s by their satisfaction that the nobles rule anyway, isn’t it? Revolutions do happen from time to time, when the populace doesn’t approve of the way things are going. And they seem to do just fine at electing mayors and sheriffs without anybody’s help.”

“Still,” he said skeptically, “to give absolute power to the people? They’ll just end up voting for whoever promises the most. That’s how mayors usually get elected. It’ll never work.”

She turned her gaze on me. “And you, Breeze? Do you think my idea is silly as well?”

I glanced back and forth between the two of them, considering it. “I like it,” I said at last. “I think we can all agree that King Ryshan didn’t always do what was best for the people. Many kings and queens do not. This way, the power is in the hands of the people. If they use it foolishly, they have no one to blame but themselves.”

Analyn smiled. “My thoughts exactly.” She finished pouring the tea and settled down at the table with us. “That’s a discussion for later. Right now, we have other worries.”

“The Vangars,” Robie said with a snarl. “I knew they were up to no good.”

“At least we know that we have twenty-four hours,” I said. “That should be enough time to finish our work.”

“Do you think so?” Analyn said.

“Of course! I’ve been to the airfield. They’re making fantastic progress. They’ve even mounted weapons on the gyros.”

“That’s good news,” Analyn said, “but I’m still worried. We may not have as much time as you think.”

“But Tinker said they would attack in twenty-four hours,” I said.

“And you believe him?”

“Why wouldn’t I? You don’t think Tinker would lie to us, do you?”

“No, of course not. I just don’t think the Vangars necessarily told him the truth.”

I stared into my tea, considering that. “You think they lied to him, in order to fool us?”

“It’s a possibility I cannot over look. Consider this: How did Tinker escape? As far as I can tell, they let him go. They even gave him a horse. And they gave him a message to deliver to us:
surrender in twenty-four hours or die
.”

“You have a point,” Robie said. “Why would they warn us if they planned to recapture the city? Why not just attack? That’s how they’ve always done things before.”

“Indeed,” Analyn said.

I groaned. “And that’s why they sent Tinker. They knew we would trust him. They knew we would believe his warning…” I raised my eyes, staring at Analyn. “They’re going to attack tonight, aren’t they?”

“I think we’d better expect it,” she said. “Breeze, I know you haven’t been well. I don’t expect you to have any part in this. You should be here with Tinker, to look after him.”