Beaumont's Gambit: A Badlands Story (Badlands Born) by Wade Peterson

Author:Wade Peterson [Peterson, Wade]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-11-03T22:00:00+00:00

Ives counted ammunition while Beaumont surveyed the lake below. At least the man had the good graces not to smirk. Why they had come under attack from one of the Caliph’s carriers was now obvious, as was its supply depot. A handful of huts and tents surrounded an old wooden building at the lake’s edge. Men in the distinctive belt-wrapped robes of the Caliphate went about the camp, some pushing carts from the wooden building to an area carved into the hill well beyond the tents. Beaumont’s eyes strained to make out the cart’s cargo: metal cylinders marked with the single red circle used for marking hydrogen.

“Providence has given us an opportunity, Captain,” Ives said. “Our enemy has made our job that much the easier. There can be no more than two guarding that stockpile at the edge of camp. My men and I will secure the area.”

Beaumont glanced at the ragged mercenaries crouched behind Ives, gaunt men with hard eyes who carried their rifles with ease. Beyond them, Chevket waited with Wallace and six crewmen. His own men had nearly collapsed at the end of the trail. They were in no condition to fight or squirrel away into the night with gas canisters. And yet, what could he do? It was only a matter of time before the Caliph’s forces found them.

“There is something off about all this,” Beaumont said. “There has to be a hundred canisters in that gas dump, enough for a squadron of airships, but only a handful of men. There should be more.”

“Perhaps they’re working inside the building,” Ives said. “Which is immaterial, Captain. We need only grab what we require and escape.”

“For someone so curious aloft, you seem disinterested in what’s before you now.”

“Priorities change, Captain. Our primary goal now has to be getting the October Sky functional, and getting back to Paradise City to make our report. The Council may then decide to send a force here to investigate, or to backtrack those deaders, but in either case, I cannot hope to continue my original mission with your crippled airship.”

Beaumont bit off a retort, and wondered how many under Ives’ command contemplated shooting the man in the back. He looked to his crewmen, the portable dynamo, and the deaders rasping to no one in particular as they milled about at the end of their chains.

“Mister Wallace, how many men would it take to bring the equipment and the deaders back to the ship?” Beaumont asked.

Wallace pursed his lips as he thought. “Two for the dynamo, two more for the empty cells, and one for the deaders.”

“Very well, take four men and return to the ship, but leave us your strongest backs. We’ll need them to haul the canisters once Agent Ives and his men secure the cave.”

“And if the plan fails, sir?” Chevket murmured.

Beaumont frowned and spread his hands. “Then let us hope Mister Wallace can locate another body of water before the Caliph’s forces find him.”

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.