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

“What’s that idiot doing?” Robie said next to me. “It’s illegal to fly over cities!”

I watched quietly as the plane circled around the north end of town and swooped in for a landing right in the middle of the park. The citizens broke into a screaming panic as they raced out of the landing path. I glanced at Robie and saw a snarl creeping across his features. He flexed his hands into fists.

 “I’m going to beat some sense into that rookie, whoever he is!” With that, he went stalking down the hill towards the plane. I threw caution to the wind and ran after him.

Robie rushed up to the plane just as it pulled to a stop. “What’s the matter with you, pilot?” he shouted.

The pilot looked down at him, his face shielded by his flying cap and goggles. “Who’s flying that thing?” Robie demanded. “What’s your name, pilot?”

The pilot climbed out of the cockpit and dropped to the ground. He pulled off the helmet and goggles and we both suddenly realized that
“he”
was in fact a
she.
Her name was Becca. She was one of the younger pilots from the squadron located at Avenston, the capital city. She had tucked her long blonde hair inside her flight jacket. From the ground, it had been impossible to tell she was female.

Becca looked right past Robie towards me, ignoring him entirely. “Commander Breeze, the kingdom has been invaded. The King is dead.” 

I hardly knew what to think at first. The words were such a shock to me that my instinctive reaction was to believe this some sort of elaborate joke. But I knew from the look on her face that it was not. My breath caught in my chest. “Attacked? Who was it, the Kanters?”

“No. I don’t know who they are, ma’am. They came in the night with no warning. The dragon ships swept in from the west and we were completely unprepared. It was all we could do to escape. A few of us, anyway.”

“Dragon ships?” I said. “The attackers came by sea?”

“No, by air. They fly in massive boats unlike anything I’ve ever seen. They look like ships sure enough, but they’re held aloft by great balloons and a vicious black smoke follows in their wake everywhere they go. They’re armed with flamethrowers and cannons larger than anything we’ve ever built. One shot could level an entire house.”

I took a deep breath, steadying myself. “The King, you said?”

“Yes, ma’am. Their first volley all but decimated the royal palace in Avenston. The entire royal family is…” she stopped as her voice broke. She took a breath and blinked away the tears. “The King and his family are all dead.”

Chapter 2

I felt my legs going weak beneath me. Robie must have seen me waver because he reached out to catch me. I pulled away. “I’m fine,” I assured him. “I just need to catch my breath.”

I heard heavy footsteps and turned to see Tinker rushing up to us. His eyes were wide, his hair blowing wildly in the wind. He looked comical, dressed in that wool suit with that manic look on his face and his hair sticking almost straight up. I would have laughed, were it not for the situation.

“What’s going on?” he said. “Is everyone okay?”

“I think not,” I said distantly. I was still trying to absorb everything. I was still in shock. I repeated what Becca had just told us, and Tinker’s face turned pale.

“All right,” he said after a moment, patting Becca on the shoulder. “Let’s get you a drink and some shade, then you tell us the whole story.”

“I’ll try,” she said, “but I don’t have much time. I have to move on to Anora and then the isle of Tal’mar, hopefully before sunset.”

I glanced at the sky. She was hoping for the impossible. In a light plane with the wind at my back, I might have made that flight by midnight, but Becca possessed neither my gift with machinery nor my flying skills. And in this season, she’d be fighting the wind for much of the journey. I didn’t bother telling her that, though. I had a feeling she already knew.

We gathered in the gazebo at the north end of the park to hear Becca’s story. The mayor and the sheriff joined us, along with several city officials and prominent business people. As we crowded in around her, Becca began to speak:

“I was sleeping in the hangar when they attacked. We didn’t have time to wait for orders. We tried to get planes in the air as fast as possible, but they swarmed over the palace and hit the airfield so fast that we didn’t even hear them coming. Only three of us made it into the air. The rest of the squadron were sitting ducks.”

“What happened to them?” Tinker said.

“I don’t know, I couldn’t see much through the smoke and fire. The invaders were firing on us with guns and harpoons. It was all I could do to stay alive.”

“What about the hangar?” Robie said. “What about the other planes?”

“They destroyed everything,” Becca said. “Everything.”

“Who gave you orders to come here?” said Tinker.

Becca looked on the verge of tears. I put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Go on,” I urged. “Tell us everything.”

She took a deep breath. “We couldn’t fight them. Our gunships never got off the ground. The rest of our weapons were useless against their dragon ships. Three of us managed to escape, and we flew our planes to the north. We landed near Old Vic’s field outside the city and tried to make our way back to the palace on foot, but halfway there we ran into a group of soldiers who had escaped.”

“Escaped?” said Robie. “You mean they abandoned their posts?”

“You might think that,” she said, “but believe me when I say they didn’t have any choice. The airships that attacked the palace were only the first of dozens. They swarmed over the capitol, decimating the King’s guard, and several ships landed in the square. Others blocked off the escape and they began executing anyone who resisted them, right in the streets. A few citizens fled into the countryside, but most were trapped inside the city. The soldiers we came across were protecting a small group of escapees. They were moving slowly and they were worried that the enemy would catch them. They told us everything that had happened, and warned us that the ships were coming our way.”

“The invaders didn’t stop at the capital, then?” Tinker said.

Becca shook her head. “I was told they were pressing into the countryside as fast as they could move. The three of us decided to split up and try to rally a response. Kahr flew south. I headed north for Riverfork and Anora. Bryn made for Tal’mar. One of the dragon ships caught up to us as we were leaving, and they shot Bryn down during takeoff. They destroyed his plane in midair. He didn’t stand a chance.”

She rose to her feet. “Now I have to get to Anora to warn them, and then to Tal’mar. There is no one else to do it.”

I instantly jumped to my feet. “You’re wrong, Becca. My delivery plane is at the airfield just outside the city. It’s not as fast as yours, but I can make it to Tal’mar by nightfall if I travel in a straight line.”

“I won’t hear of it,” said Mayor Rutherford, speaking up for the first time. He was large, both in stature and girth as most official men seem to be, and he wore jeweled rings on his fingers and clothes of the finest materials. I doubted his hands had ever known a blister.

I eyed him narrowly. “What did you say?”

“I won’t hear of it! We need you here, to help protect the city.”

“My plane won’t help you protect anything,” I said impatiently. “It’s unarmed and it’s full of mail.”

“Nonetheless, we may need it, in case we need to make a sudden escape.”

I stared at him. “Sudden escape? I can’t take more than one or two passengers… just who are you thinking will escape?”

He straightened his shoulders. “The continuity of government is of the upmost importance at times like this.”

“It’s you that you’re worried about,” Robie said with disgust. “The fight hasn’t even started and you’re already planning to tuck tail and run.”

I shook my head, baffled. Humans never fail to amaze me when it comes to their self-serving nature. The Tal’mar can be arrogant for certain, but even the wealthiest Tal’mar noble would never suggest his life was more important than that of his subjects, much less do it so transparently. I searched for a response but found only anger. I wanted to punch the worthless fool right in the mouth.

“I’m leaving,” I said, turning away.

“Oh no you don’t,” the mayor said. “Sheriff, arrest this girl!”

I paused, glaring at the two of them. I felt Robie go tense beside me and sensed his left hand sliding up to loosen his sword in its sheath. Tinker clenched his fists at his sides, a look of anger burning in his eyes.

The sheriff’s gaze swept over us as he measured the situation. I thought we might be in for a fight, but then he smiled grimly and said, “I don’t think so, Mr. Mayor. The people of this town elected me to look after their well-being. The way I see it, the best thing for them is to get help coming. The only way for that to happen is for Breeze to get in that plane and fly to Tal’mar as fast as the wind can carry her.”

They mayor’s face turned red. “I won’t forget this,” he said threateningly.

“I won’t either,” the sheriff replied, staring back at him. “Voting time’s coming up, and a lot of people won’t take kindly when they hear about this.”

 The mayor grunted and stomped out of the gazebo without a backwards glance. I reached for my jacket and turned to Tinker, suddenly remembering that he had flown in with me. It was more than an hour’s flight back to his valley. I didn’t have time to fly him back home.

“Go on,” he said, his eyes full of understanding “I would only slow you down.”

“You shouldn’t stay here,” I said. “It might be dangerous.”

He smiled, giving me that fatherly look he always saved for moments when I was being foolish. “Where would I go?” he said. “Home? To huddle alone in my cottage up in the mountains, while good people fight and die?”

I stared into his face. “Tinker, you can’t stay here. The invaders could be here in hours!”

“And why not? You think I’m so old I can’t pull a trigger?”

I felt tears stinging my eyes. I searched for words to argue, but none came. Tinker wanted to stay and fight alongside the townsfolk. How could I stop him? He couldn’t abandon them anymore than I could. But at his age… I couldn’t bring myself to think of what might happen.

“At least pull back to Anora,” I said somberly, the words catching in my throat. “There you can put up a real defense.”

“We will discuss it,” he said. “It’s not my decision to make, unfortunately.”

I stared at him, my heart pounding with anxiety. I hated leaving Tinker, but I knew he wouldn’t have it any other way. I could argue with him until I was blue in the face, but ultimately I’d just be wasting time. I threw my arms around him and then turned away before he could see my tears.

“I’ll come back as soon as I can,” I said over my shoulder.

I rushed down the stairs and out across the meadow, slipping through the confused townsfolk that had gathered around the gazebo to listen in on our conversation. I pushed them out of the way as I abandoned the park and raced up the cobbled streets of Riverfork, my soft leather boots making barely more than a whisper of noise. I was halfway across town before I slowed down. It was only then that I realized Robie was right behind me. I heard his footsteps and glanced over my shoulder, surprised to see him just a few steps back. I was shocked that I hadn’t heard him running behind me.

“What do you think you’re doing?” I said, wiping the tears from my cheeks.

“I’m going with you.”

“Don’t be a fool. They need you here.”

“Really? This town has fifty soldiers and a few hundred good fighting men. Do you think one more will save them? If you think that, then you’re the one who’s foolish. Besides Miss Tinkerman,
do you think you could stop me?
”

That stung a little, having my own words thrown back in my face. Even more so as I examined the question and realized I wasn’t sure if I could stop him. With magic, maybe. I have a gift for reaching inside people’s bodies and making things happen… but I wouldn’t dare hurt someone like that, especially not a friend. Physically speaking, Robie could have broken me in half. He had grown quite strong over the years. He was considerably taller than I was, and quite muscular.

I spun on my heels and hurried on, not giving him the satisfaction of a reply. When I got to the landing strip, I immediately began hauling the mail out of the plane, hoping to reduce the weight of the aircraft and make it fly faster. Robie helped. We tossed the boxes and packages inside the hanger door where they would be protected from the elements. Minutes later, we were taxiing down the landing strip.

I checked the gauge on my dash and noted that the spring engine in my plane was freshly wound. Every airbase has soldiers trained to hook the engines up to steam machines as soon as they land. With that much energy stored, I could easily fly to Tal’mar and back, maybe even twice. Getting there wasn’t the problem, though. It was the time involved. I needed to give the Tal’mar time to rally a defense, maybe even send a force south to help the humans at Anora and Riverfork.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t make the plane fly any faster than its design allowed. With a comfortable cabin for passengers and a small storage hold for delivering packages, the weight of the vehicle made it too slow and cumbersome for speed or aerobatics. All I could do was fly directly to the northwest and hope the wind wouldn’t fight me.

I heard Robie gasp as we climbed into the sky and circled north. He pointed out his window and I leaned over to see what the matter was. Through the hazy glass, I saw several dozen large black shapes moving north and west through the sky. I stared, disbelieving, studying every detail. The ships were broad on the main deck, curving gracefully from bow to stern like a riverboat, except for the frighteningly realistic dragon heads carved into their prows. Massive black balloons tethered to the ships’ hulls provide buoyancy, allowing the dragon ships to glide gracefully and almost effortlessly across the sky. Two massive propellers jetted out each side of the aft end providing direction and control so that the ships would function with equal aptitude in the sky or at sea. Their tattered sails billowed out behind them, blending with the thick black smoke that poured out of the engines, leaving a long trail in their wake.