Catapult Talk

Thomas grabbed a loop of rope from the tool chest, and hung it over his left shoulder. He motioned with an open palm toward the forest. Fred followed him.

Thomas said, "I am not going to tell you exactly what I have in mind." Then he smiled, and said, "Who knows? You might have a better idea than what I have. But to answer your question - Yes. What we are building will be used against the dragon. What makes you think that we would go into the caves?"

"You do not have a choice. You know that the dragon has his hoard there. If you are to mount an attack, you have to find a spot where you know where he will be."

"Or lure him into a place of our own choosing."

"How are you going to get him outside without getting yourselves killed? And what good would it do? You are giving him the advantage of being able to take off when he is attacked."

Thomas replied, "The dragon can find his way here. He fancies the pond, but does not venture much beyond it. There is little that he would want in the scrub or mountains."

"And how would you lure him to the chosen field of battle?" Thomas said nothing. Fred said, "Princess Astra, right?"

Thomas looked at him and nodded as they approached a fallen tree.

"Fred, you get under the far end and lift when I say 'Go.' I will do the same from my end. Then I will move forward until we are near the clearing."

Thomas bound some of the loose branches from the top end of the tree with his rope, and when he was finished, he bent down, facing Fred and said, "Go!" He and Fred lifted the trunk to shoulder height, and Thomas walked backward toward the clearing, carrying his end of the trunk.

Fred was close enough so that he could talk to Thomas without raising his voice. "So how did you get the princess to act as bait? She just got out!"

Thomas replied, "She knows that she is living on borrowed time. The dragon will be looking for her. Rather than hunkering down, she wishes to attack and settle this."

"I understand. I am of the same mind."

"So what do you think my plan is?"

Fred thought. "You were an engineer before you came here. We are carrying a log. Wheeled wooden platform. You have carpenter's tools. Normally something of this size suggests a palisade wall, but that is defensive."

Thomas said, "Go on."

"This could be the beam for some sort of catapult. You have plenty of rocks. A lucky shot might wound the dragon enough so that I could finish him off. And it would give the attacker some distance from the dragon at first. The problem is that even if we could get the dragon to stay still, catapults are not precision weapons. And with the first shot, the catapult's position would be exposed. Besides that, the princess is as likely to be crushed by a rock as the dragon. I don't like that idea."

"So, how would you overcome those problems?"

"I suppose that if you could make the swinging beam go fast enough, that you could use smaller rocks. They might spread over a wider area. The princess would surely be hit, too - unless she was close enough to the dragon, and she is able to use the dragon as a wall protecting her. Very risky. And with smaller rocks, each will have less of an impact. You would need them to go very fast. And if you don't get the dragon with the first shot, you are still in trouble. You would never be able to hit him again before reloading."

"And if you could choose a field of battle using a catapult, say?"

"You would need flat ground. And a clear view of the dragon."

"Why?"

"You are talking about a massive catapult. You need the flat ground to move it there. And if you have trees blocking the way, you cannot aim your shot. If that is what you have in mind, I just do not see this as being practical."

Thomas replied, "Do you have a good grip on the log?"

"Sure do."

"Good. We are just about back. So where did you learn about catapults? Have you ever been in battle?"

"No, sir. I have attended some war games during a tournament, and had one demonstrated to me. We have not had any actual wars in Allaria recently. The dragon attacks are bad enough."

"Unpredictable, aren't they? That is one thing about this dragon. He relies on surprise and terror as much as his armour and fire. So when it comes time to face the dragon, what makes you sure that you will not run?"

"I will not. I do not think that I could look you or the princess in the eye if I did."

"That is a noble thought. So you don't like the catapult plan. We have eight people available, in addition to you and the princess. How would you distribute them?"

"How many swordsmen do you have? I saw Anselm carrying a sword."

"I can use a sword. Astra lost her sabre ..."

"I think I have it. I will show you once we put this log down."

"If you have it, she will be glad to get it back. I would say that you are looking at four swordsmen that I would trust out of our band."

"So the rest of them use bows and arrows?"

"Yes. It is more practical for hunting here."

"Are bows and arrows your personal preference?"

The trees thinned out, and Fred could see Anselm working on joining two pieces of wood. After this conversation, Fred looked at the platform again. It could be used to transport a catapult. But if that is what this was, it appeared as if it were going to be more complex and larger than what Fred had seen at the tournament.

Thomas said, "Fred, let us place this on the platform. I am going to walk to the far side of it, and when I say 'Lower,' gently lower the spar."

As Fred approached the platform, he stopped and held the log. Thomas worked his way around the platform, and finally stood opposite Fred. He said, "Lower," and they set the log down.

"Now, as far as my favorite weapon, it depends on who I am going against. If it were you, I would say a crossbow from about thirty yards should do it. I could strike you before you could use your sword."

"We are going to be going against the dragon. What do you have?"

"Well, I have a number of weapons left over from would-be heroes. Guaranteed for the life of the wielder, as they say. I am going to choose to use ...."

1. something like the catapults that you were talking about. But you were off on how to deploy it - or them.
2. something more powerful than a catapult.
3. something smaller than a catapult. Our advantage is in something besides the size of our weapon.
4. something that you will find out about later, in good time.

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