Chapter 14
Sergeant Sheila Adams
I laid naked in my bed next to my weredragon lover. The thought of the massive Clenok cyborg army coming toward us was on my mind. We had two weeks, at the most, before they would arrive, and I could only hope the weather would delay them even longer. A good blizzard would stop them from moving for a couple of days. But we still needed to do something. They would get here eventually, no matter how long, if it took weeks or a year. There was no way to prepare for an army of that size. The only way we could win is if we weren't there in the village at all. That's it! I sat up in bed.
“What is it?” Azlo asked.
“I have a plan.”
“I am listening,” he said as he sat up.
“What if we let the Clenok take Providence?”
“What? Are you insane? You would let the villagers die at the hands of the cyborgs?” he said looking at me confused.
“No, what if we weren't here when the army arrived? Whenever they finally arrive. What if we evacuated? There are only five hundred people in this village. How many can your ships carry? What if we evacuate to this Haven Brook that you speak of? Does that village have room for five hundred more?” I asked.
“That is a good plan. I never thought about moving the village; I don't see why we couldn't. My ships can carry that many, even if it takes more than one trip. My ships are fast, and we can fly into the atmosphere where the cyborgs won't detect us. Haven Brook had many abandoned houses, more than five hundred, and it was a bigger village than this. They had many resources and my king can you bring more. I think we can do this,” he said.
“Great, so we can vacuum wait and then we can set up a trap here,” I said.
“What? What trap?” he asked.
“We have the keddle in the bank. We can turn it on again and bring them here. Maybe they will reconnect to it or take it to the repair facility. The panel will have the virus, and it spread to whatever the machines connected to. They recycle,” I said.
“That is a brilliant idea. But we can't turn on the panel until after the evacuation, or it might alert smaller bands of Clenok in the area like the first ones that came.”
“You are right. It can't be turned on until the town has been evacuated completely and all of your soldiers are gone. We have to make sure that all are safe before setting the trap. So I will stay behind to do it,” I said.
“Like hell you will. It is too dangerous,” he said.
“Someone has to do it. It is my plan. I won't ask another to sacrifice and put themselves in danger for a plan that I came up with. I have to be the one to do it,” I said getting angry at him.
“Fine, if you were going to be that stubborn, then I will stay with you. We will do it together,” he said.
“You will?” I asked.
“Of course I will. You will need someone to fly you out of here, and since you do not have wings or a ship, you need me. Admit it; I want to hear it. Say you need me,” he said.
“I need you, Azlo. I need you, and I need your help,” I said playfully.
“I like the sound of that. Now let's get out of bed and put this plan of evacuation into action. I will go tell my soldiers at the base camp, and you can handle telling the villagers,” he said as he jumped out of bed.
“I will call for an assembly,” I said.
He pulled me into his arms and kissed me. I melted against him. His kisses always made me hot and warm inside.
We went our separate ways. He went to the base, and I went to the village center. It was busy in the middle of the day. I spread the word: assembly in one hour. The word spread fast. An hour later, I was standing in front of the five hundred villagers, except for those that stayed on the fence always keeping watch.
“People of Providence! I have bad news. There is a very large Clenok army three hundred miles from here. They are headed in the direction of our village, but there is no way to know if we are their final destination. But because of the size of the army, we need to take drastic measures. The army has been reported to be the size of one hundred thousand cyborgs,” I said.
Commotion and panic gripped the crowd. Everyone began talking over each other. They knew that this was bad news and that we did not have a chance. Not even with the dragon army.
“Please! Quiet down. There is more! I shouted.
They became quiet and looked at me. Casper was at my side and already knew the information that I was about to say because I had told him first.
“We and the Veruka weredragons know that we are no match for an army of that size. But it will be days before they reach us. So we plan to use that time wisely. The Veruka have agreed to help us evacuate Providence and take us to another human colony called Haven Brook. This colony has a better defense system in place, and they have room and resources to share with us. This is our only hope. Each of you are allowed to bring one bag with you in the evacuation. I urge you to bring clothing, shoes, and small sentimental items. We will all be packing light. You will not be bringing boxes with you. This is not moving day. This is an emergency evacuation. I don't know when the evacuations will start, but I would like you all to go home and to prepare. If you have questions, Casper will be your go-to person. I will be busy working with the Veruka to oversee this evacuation. I must also ask that when we arrive at Haven Brook, you all be on your best behavior. Bringing people together is never an easy thing, and at first, we will be their guests until we acclimate to their society. But this is a good thing. You will have more people to meet and to talk to you and share experiences with. There is a bigger Veruka army stationed there, as well as their king. Therefore it is a more secure than our village. The Veruka will be taking us on their airships to Haven Brook. Now go; prepare for evacuation,” I said.
The crowd dispersed rapidly. There was chaos but also a tone of hope. They seemed to be anxious to get out of Providence and to see this new human colony. I did not blame them. Being around the same five hundred people over and over for the last few years had been hard for everyone. It would be good to create new friendships and be in a new environment.
“Casper, go prepare your own evacuation bag and then make yourself available here in the village to those that might have questions. I will be at the Veruka basecamp should you need me,” I said.
“Yes, Sergeant, and, Sergeant… thank you. This is a good plan,” he said.
“I am glad that you think so. Thank you for your help as well,” I said.